We lost an officer today

[jcm]

Today for the first since 1867 we lost a police officer in the line of duty. He was 35 and father of 3. This is the first time for me witnessing a funeral like this, and it began with Officer Zapata's "last call." This was symbolic of his loss and the retiring of his number. I was moved way more than I anticipated. Just wanted to share for anyone who was interested.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78jfMnzKtdA

Jen

 

[RapidBreath]

Jen- It is a very somber event, the loss of an officer. We lost a member of the family in a terrible incident in Oakland not too long ago, he too was the father of several small children.

Thanks for posting, I believe that they deserve to be remembered.

 

[tralaiven]

jcm; I am sorry for your loss. When my husband was first a cop in one of the toughest cities in the United States, one of the SWAT officers was killed in the line of duty. We went to the funeral and it is something I will never forget as I saw his pregnant wife and small son. They lay their life on the line everyday and many times are despised and lumped together with "bad cops" who give them all a bad name, but there are a lot of good ones out there.

 

[JT]

Jen,
Very sad event. My heart goes out to his family.

 

[DixieGirl]

I'm so sorry for the loss of your officer Jen. Our city lost two officers one year apart both with young families not too long ago. It's heartbreaking to hear news like this. May he rest in peace.

 

[jcm]

I just appreciate everyone acknowleding this. Our city hasn't lost an officer in the line of duty since 1867. It was amazing to see the tradition and symbolism in the service and processional. The funeral processional was 13 miles, involved hundreds of police/fire vehicles from all over the state and the streets were lined with people showing respect. Many officers drove by in cars moved to tears by the outpouring of support. Just seeing my community come together like that made for a very powerful - and encouraging - day.