US lawmakers propose renaming post office for 2 officers killed in Tremonton last year

WASHINGTON — Utah's four representatives in the U.S. House are pursuing a measure to rename the Tremonton Post Office for the two officers killed in the city last year while responding to a call.

"This simple yet poignant memorial will forever stand as a testament to the impact they have had on their neighbors," U.S. Rep. Blake Moore, the sponsor of the bill, said in a social media post Monday.

Sgt. Lee Sorensen, 56, and officer Eric Estrada, 31, of the Tremonton-Garland Police Department, were shot and killed on Aug. 17, 2025, while responding to a domestic violence call at a home in Tremonton. The wife of Ryan Michael Bate had called emergency dispatchers to their home after Bate had allegedly beaten the woman. The man shot the officers as they responded, killing them, prosecutors say.

The proposal, HR8225, was introduced last Thursday and calls for renaming the U.S. post office at 111 S. Tremont St. in Tremonton the Sorensen-Estrada Post Office. Moore is the main sponsor, and U.S. Reps. Celeste Maloy, Burgess Owens and Mike Kennedy, all Republicans and the other congressional representatives from Utah, are cosponsors.

The killing of Sorensen and Estrada prompted a huge outpouring from people all around Utah, and the proposal to rename the post office generated supportive comments from Tremonton-area officials.

The two officers "consistently went above and beyond in protecting those in need, while willingly putting themselves in the line of danger. A recognition of their service at this building in the center of Tremonton will be a constant reminder of a grateful town," said Utah Sen. Scott Sandall, R-Tremonton.

Tremonton Mayor Bret Rohde said the renaming would serve "as a daily reminder to every officer putting on the uniform that their community has their backs."

Dustin Cordova, chief of the Tremonton-Garland Police Department, lauded Estrada and Sorenson as more than law enforcement officers.

"They were husbands, fathers and brothers to every officer who had the privilege of serving alongside them. Tremonton lost two of its best, and that loss does not fade. A post office bearing their names ensures that generations from now, people will stop, read and ask who these men were. That is how heroes live forever," Cordova said.

Bate faces two counts of capital murder, a capital offense, and an array of 18 other charges in last year's incident, including four counts of attempted aggravated murder, a first-degree felony. Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty.

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