KENOSHA, Wis. — The annual Kenosha Law Enforcement Memorial Service is held every year on Antonio Pingitore Way.
Antonio is one of eight Kenosha law enforcement officers lost, but not forgotten.
“So thrilled that we’re able to drive by once in a while and see that name,” said Andrea Squires, the great-granddaughter of Antonio Pingitore.
“It just fills me with a lot of pride.”
Local law enforcement, elected officials and community leaders honored the lives of those who made the ultimate sacrifice at the event on Wednesday at the Kenosha Public Safety Monument, 5500 Second Ave.
Those killed in the line of duty include:
Jacob Keul (1922), James C. Rieschl (1961), Blanco Aquino (1991) and Frank Fabiano Jr. (2007) of the Kenosha County Sheriff’s Department and Pingitore (1919), Donald Murphy (1953), Gary W. Fraid (1973) and Dreux Beaulier (2004) of the Kenosha Police Department.
Pingitore was an Italian immigrant who was hired to communicate with a growing Italian community in Kenosha. He was shot and killed during a robbery at American Brass in 1919.
“He figured prominently in some big cases in Kenosha,” said Peter Pingitore Sr., the grandson of Antonio Pingitore.
According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, there have been 56 line-of-duty deaths nationwide already in 2024.
“So important to acknowledge the sacrifices that these men and women make,” Squires said.
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