Hampton Area Police Officers, Firefighters to Honor Maloney

Law enforcement officers and firefighters from across the Seacoast are expected to wear special Thin Blue Line ribbons in honor of Greenland Police Chief Michael Maloney on Friday, April 12, one year after he was killed during a drug raid.

Greenland Town Administrator Karen Anderson and volunteers made more than 3,000 of the special ribbons to honor Maloney and a large crowd of townspeople and Portsmouth area residents are expected to gather in front of the Greenland Police Station at 5 p.m. to observe a moment of silence.

Previously, Anderson said many people were unsure what the town should do to mark the date until she came up with an idea to create the special Thin Blue Line ribbons that people could wear on April 12.

The moment of silence will be held before the Greenland Central School holds a community talent show at 6 p.m. A portion of the proceeds from that show will help Greenland Police officers travel to Washington, D.C., in May to see Maloney's name added to the National Law Enforcement Memorial.

Throughout the Seacoast, police officers and firefighters in communities from Hampton, North Hampton, Portsmouth, Exeter and more will be wearing the special ribbons to remember Maloney's bravery and his sacrifice. Anderson previously said the ribbons were available for free at the Greenland town offices and as word spread that she was making them, her office was flooded with requests for them from within and outside of the community

Maloney was killed and four other police officers were wounded on April 12, 2012, when they approached the former home of Cullen Mutrie on 517 Post Road to serve a warrant during a drug raid and Mutrie opened fire on them. Authorities say Mutrie later shot and killed his ex-girlfriend, Brittany Tibbetts, who was inside the home with him during the standoff, before he turned the gun on himself.

The one-year anniversary of Maloney's death will also be remembered by Gov. Maggie Hassan. According to Hassan's press secretary, Marc Goldberg, the governor will speak at a New Hampshire Police Academy graduation ceremony in Concord at 2 p.m.

“The Greenland community and entire state of New Hampshire were shaken to the core by the tragic loss of Chief Maloney, whose heroism on that day in helping to rescue his fellow wounded officers will never be forgotten,” said Hassan, in a prepared statement.

“Over the last year, the people of Greenland and so many others have come together to give each other strength, help one another through the grief, and emerge stronger and more committed than ever to the safety of our communities. Chief Maloney’s memory will forever serve as a beacon of the strength and resiliency that epitomizes the Granite State."

Police academy graduates have been collecting donations to the Chief Michael Maloney Memorial Fund, which was created to provide relief for the distressed members, spouses and children of New England Public Safety members who have been killed or injured in the line of duty. Current Greenland Police Chief Tara Laurent and other members of the Greenland Police Department are expected to attend tomorrow’s ceremony, he said.