A candlelight vigil will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 6, at the Bradley Police Department to honor Sgt. Marlene Rittmanic's 50th birthday, The Daily Journal reported.
"What was supposed to be a day of celebration will now be a day of remembrance," the department wrote on its Facebook page.
Rittmanic was killed while on duty on Dec. 30, 2021 while her partner, Officer Tyler Bailey, was critically wounded at a northern Illinois hotel while responding to a call about dogs barking in an unattended vehicle, NewsChannel20.com reported. Thursday, Oct. 6, would have been her 50th birthday.
Rittmanic met her wife, Lyn Stua, on May 31, 1999; they were married June 11, 2011.