House Passes Representative Angie Craig’s Legislation to Rename Local Post Office After Fallen South St. Paul Police Officer
Leo Pavlak is the only South St. Paul Police Officer to have been killed in the line of duty
WASHINGTON, DC – This week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed Representative Angie Craig’s bill to rename the South St. Paul Post Office in honor of fallen South St. Paul Police Officer Leo Pavlak. After only four months on the force, Officer Pavlak was killed by the infamous Barker-Karpis Gang during a robbery on August 30, 1933. He is the only South St. Paul Police Officer to have been killed in the line of duty. The bill now heads to the Senate for passage.
Since Officer Pavlak’s death in 1933, four generations of Pavlaks have joined the ranks of Minnesota law enforcement. Robert Leo Pavlak Sr. followed in his father’s footsteps, pursuing a career as a police officer in St. Paul. One of his grandsons, Robert, was a Ramsey County Deputy – while another one of his grandsons, David, was a St. Paul Police Officer. And finally, Officer Pavlak’s great-grandsons, Luke and Ryan, have continued this legacy as police officers in the Twin Cities area.
Yesterday, Rep. Angie Craig spoke in favor of the bill on the House floor. Video of those remarks can be found here.
“89 years ago, South St. Paul Police Officer Leo Pavlak lost his life protecting his community – and in the years since, his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren have continued building upon his legacy of service,” said Representative Craig. “I was proud to see this bill passed out of the House today – and I’m calling on the Senate to pass this bill to help us recognize not only Officer Pavlak’s service and dedication, but that of the entire Pavlak family.”
“Our family is grateful that the U.S. House of Representatives passed this important bill, bringing us one step closer to renaming the South St. Paul Post Office in honor of our beloved father, grandfather and great-grandfather, Leo Pavlak,” said Bob Pavlak, the grandson of Officer Pavlak. “The renaming of this post office offers an important opportunity to honor the service and sacrifice of all law enforcement in our community. Our family would like to thank Representative Craig, South St. Paul Police Chief Brian Wicke and former South St. Paul Police Chief Bill Messerich for their dedicated work to seeing this bill passed out of the House.”
Representative Craig’s bill is part of a bipartisan, bicameral effort to honor Officer Pavlak. Earlier in June, Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith introduced a companion bill in the Senate. Craig, Klobuchar and Smith were joined in introducing this legislation by their colleagues in the Minnesota delegation – Representatives Dean Phillips, Betty McCollum, Ilhan Omar, Tom Emmer, Michelle Fischbach, Brad Finstad and Pete Stauber. The legislation is also supported by the Pavlak family and local leaders in South St. Paul.
###