Montgomery County Pays Respect to Officer Kyle Olinger

Hundreds gathered at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney on Wednesday to pay respects to the late Kyle Olinger, a former Montgomery County police officer.

Olinger died in April, almost 16 years after he was shot in the line of duty while performing a traffic stop in Silver Spring on Aug. 13, 2003. He was 53. According to police, during the stop, a person in the car shot Olinger in the neck.

The gunshot wounds not only left Olinger paralyzed below his chest for the rest of his life, but he also had to retire early from the police.

Officer Rick Goodale, a spokesperson for Montgomery County Police Department, said Olinger, a former Marine, served the county for about a year before he was shot. Despite having to retire, Goodale said Olinger remained active within MCPD and served as a mentor for young officers.

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Olinger’s family moved to Arizona after he was paralyzed. It was there where Olinger’s funeral was held.

The state of Arizona ruled Olinger’s death a homicide, caused by the wounds he received in the line of duty.

Community Celebrates Late Officer Kyle Olinger in Olney

Courtesy of MCPD

Olinger’s family returned to Montgomery County for a “Celebration of Life” memorial. A police procession led Olinger’s ashes from Rockville to Olney that morning.

A service was then held at Good Counsel, where Olinger’s son, Justin, spoke about his late father. Councilmember Gabe Albornoz was moved by Justin Olinger’s speech.

“His words were so eloquent and his sacrifice so big,” Albornoz said.

After the service inside, Olinger received a 21-gun salute outside. Both Olinger’s widow and mother were presented with a United States flag.

Marcus Jones, the acting chief for MCPD, said he thanked Olinger’s mother.

“I just told Kyle’s mom that, on behalf of the United State of America, on behalf of the state of Maryland, and on behalf of the Montgomery County Police Department, that we presented her with this flag in Kyle’s memory and we wanted to make sure that she understood that we loved them and that we support them and that Kyle gave the ultimate sacrifice for this community,” Jones said.

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Flag Presentation to Kyle Olinger’s Family

About Deirdre Byrne

Deirdre Byrne is a social media coordinator for Montgomery Community Media. She can be reached at dbyrne@mymcmedia.org or on twitter at @DeirdreByrneMCM.

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