Parade, vigil and funeral service planned for fallen Fairway officer
10 August 2023
FAIRWAY, Kan. — Kansas Governor Laura Kelly is directing flags be flown at half-staff at all state grounds, buildings and facilities from sunrise to sundown on Monday, Aug. 14, to honor fallen Fairway Police Officer Jonah Oswald.
Sunday morning, the 29-year-old officer joined a pursuit of two suspects that began in Lenexa for a stolen car that struck a police car. It ended in Mission at a QuikTrip.
Gunfire was exchanged, killing one of the suspects and critically injuring Oswald. He died the next day from his injuries at the University of Kansas Health System.
“Jonah’s death is a reminder of the sacrifices our law enforcement officers make every day in service to their fellow Kansans,” Kelly said Thursday. “My thoughts are with his family and loved ones as they mourn his loss.”
Andrea Rene Cothran, 32 of Goodlettsville, Tennessee, has been charged in connection to the incident. Right now, Cothran isn’t being charged in Oswald’s death, but Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe said that could change.
Oswald was a four-year veteran of the Fairway Police Department and also served with the Buckner, Missouri, Police Department. But he’s also remembered as a husband, father of two young children and an active member in his community.
A “Parade of Blue” is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. Friday and conclude with a candlelight vigil.
A visitation will then take place from 5-8 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 13, and a memorial service will take place on at 11 a.m. Monday, Aug. 14. Both events will be held at the Westside Family Church in Lenexa.
According to the Lenexa Police Department, through at least the end of the week, Fairway officers will not be responding to calls. Neighboring departments will be answering their calls for service, including the Johnson County Sherriff’s Department.
Until his funeral, officers from across the area are rotating to stand watch over his body 24 hours a day at Amos Funeral Home in Shawnee.
If you wish to donate to the Oswald family, you can donate here.
Kansas City-area Price Chopper locations are also taking donations from Aug. 9 through Aug. 22, and all proceeds collected will go toward the family.