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OGDEN — Typically, if you see a lot of flashing police lights, it means that someone is in trouble. However, that wasn’t the case with all the police motorcycles Saturday morning.
The fifth memorial ride for fallen Ogden police officer Jared Francom took place Saturday morning and officers from several agencies rallied together to show their support. Francom was killed in the line of duty in January 2012.
“This is really all about the law enforcement community in our area just coming together,” Ogden police Chief Mike Ashment said. “This is all about our brother Jared. I got to tell you, I bet Jared is up there looking down on us and has a big, cheesy grin on his face and is just proud of all the people who are here.”
There were a lot of motorcyclists on the memorial ride, but not just police — other bikers also accompanied them through the mountains and canyons from Riverdale to Morgan and Huntsville to Ogden.
“The outpouring of support is unbelievable,” Unified police Sgt. Jason Richman said.
Although the memorial ride was in honor of Francom, Richman said he also rode for his friend, Doug Barney. Barney was also shot and killed in the line of duty, earlier this year.
“I did know Doug. He was a very good friend of mine and you absolutely never do forget,” Richman said. “It means so much to us that people come out and memorialize Doug and the families of fallen police officers and soldiers. It means the world to us to have this kind of support.”
“Another unfortunate line-of-duty death,” Ashment said of Barney. “And we’re all one big family, and so this is what it’s all about — supporting each other.”
All the money raised during the annual memorial ride, from donations to food and drinks sold at the park after the ride, will go towards Barney’s family.