Fallen Philadelphia officer Sgt. Jaime Roman honored with memorial plaque at 25th District headquarters
Outside 25th District headquarters, members of the Philadelphia Department, alongside the family of Sgt. Jaime Roman, gathered Wednesday to dedicate a memorial plaque for one of their own killed while serving in the line of duty.
"Part of what we're trying to do is memorialize them, to keep their legacy alive, to make people understand who they are," said Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel.
On Sept. 10, 2024, Roman died from a gunshot wound he sustained in June during a traffic stop in Kensington. The 31-year-old left behind a wife, a 7-year-old daughter and a 4-year-old son who bears his name.
"It's been very hard, but it means a lot that he continues to get recognized and they continue to keep his name alive, and so it shows his family, it shows me, it shows his son that his death will not go in vain," said Jazmin Hernandez, Roman's widow.
Hernandez said Roman, who was posthumously promoted to sergeant, always dreamed of becoming a police officer.
"Everything he did was for others. He cared about his community. He wasn't an officer just for a paycheck. He actually wanted to make a difference," she said.
Hernandez says the past year has tested her faith but she remains grateful.
"A lot of support from the community, from police department, from the FOP, Lodge 5, from the other survivors' families. We've been very close knit, and they're the reason I've been getting by," she said.
Bethel, who now wears a band for the fallen officers under his watch, said he hopes this will be a place to remember a hero gone too soon.
"That's what the goal is, you know, to really keep their legacy. I mean, these men and women give their lives, and it's just so important that folks understand that," Bethel said.