'Meaningful sacrifices': Gov. Ron DeSantis voices support for police during annual Volusia and Flagler memorial ceremony

The 2025 Volusia and Flagler Counties Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony honored 37 local officers and 2 K-9s who have died in the line of duty since 1985.

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis touted the state's support of law enforcement and recently signed legislation during a surprise appearance at the 2025 Volusia and Flagler Counties Law Enforcement Memorial Ceremony, held the morning of Thursday, May 22, at Daytona Memorial Park.

"Now, if you're not wearing a uniform, most people just flee from danger and protect themselves," DeSantis said. "But the decision that law enforcement personnel have to make has already been made for them once they put on the badge —they are going into the trouble. They're going to put their life on the line to protect innocent people in our society, if it comes to that."

DeSantis spoke about $1,000 bonuses granted to sworn law enforcement officers during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as a $5,000 bonus for new recruits. He announced he had signed HB 279 on Wednesday, which increases penalties for swatting, the term used when people make false 911 reports that result in a deployment of significant law enforcement resources. 

The governor also declared he will be signing HB 113 into law; this bill increases penalties for fleeing or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer who has initiated a traffic stop. 

"To the families here who lost loved ones, those sacrifices that your husband, your father, your brother made — those sacrifices were meaningful sacrifices," DeSantis said. "Those sacrifices make a difference for this state and this community, and if we didn't have people that were willing to sacrifice themselves for the benefit of others, we would have no chance of being a strong, free and prosperous state."

Held annually to honor fallen officers in both counties, the memorial ceremony featured a motor brigade, a roll call of officers who have died in the line of duty, the placement of a ceremonial wreath and a traditional 21 gun salute.

This year's keynote speaker was Seventh Judicial Circuit State Attorney RJ Larizza, who said that for the families in attendance, the loss of their loved one is a memory they carry with them for the rest of their lives.

"My sincere and genuine hope and prayer is that all of us here today can share with them, and to remember, and feel the suffering and the pain along with them," Larizza said. "Maybe, just maybe, we can carry that burden with them for a little while."

The ceremony honored honored 37 local officers and 2 K-9s who have died since 1895, including Ormond Beach Police Officer Robert Grim, who died in 2004; and Cpl. Michael Bakaysa, who died in 2023). The Flagler County Sheriff's Office honored five of its fallen officers: Sheriff Perry Hall and Deputy Sheriff George Durrance, both who died in 1927; Deputy Sheriff Charles T. Sease, who died in 2003; Sgt. Francesco Luigi Celico, who died in 2011; and Deputy First Class Paul Luciano, who died in 2021.

Larizza said he's gotten to know some of the families, such as that of the late Daytona Beach Police Officer Sam Ethredge, who died in 1980. His family wore shirts with his name as they sat in the front row of the ceremony. 

Larizza also recognized the family of the late DBPD Officer Jason Raynor, who was killed in 2021.

"That's why we work with Governor DeSantis and all of our legislators to make sure that you and your families are safe," Larizza said. "We're not social workers. We're prosecutors and law enforcement, and our job is to protect you."

 

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