On Thursday morning, May 17, 2012, the Kaufman County Sheriff's Office National Police Week Memorial Service was held at the Kaufman County Law Enforcement Center in Kaufman. A dozen local police agencies were on hand to participate in the service. Members of the community and the families of officers and deputies killed in the line of duty were also in attendance.
On Thursday morning, May 17, 2012, the Kaufman County Sheriff's Office National Police Week Memorial Service was held at the Kaufman County Law Enforcement Center in Kaufman. A dozen local police agencies were on hand to participate in the service. Members of the community and the families of officers and deputies killed in the line of duty were also in attendance.
Attending a police officer memorial service is always a bittersweet occasion. On one hand you are there to mourn the loss of law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty, but on the other, you are there to celebrate their lives and the lives of the brave men and women who continue to serve their communities. Deputies, constables, and police officers at the ceremony all wore black bands across their badges, in honor of 1,776 Texas law officers who have been killed in the line of duty. That number makes Texas the state that has sadly lost more officers than any other state.
Captain Ernie Zepeda of the Kaufman County Sheriff's Office began the ceremony by saying that when he was just six years old, his uncle was murdered. That catapulted his desire, his calling to help others. Almost all law enforcement officers have a story, a reason they became a cop, and most of those stories start with these words, “I wanted to make a difference, I wanted to help.”
Kaufman County Judge Bruce Wood spoke next and thanked law enforcement for the job they do. He read a proclamation approved by the Commissioners Court, which declared May 17, 2012 as, “Law Enforcement Appreciation Day in Kaufman County.” Judge Wood reminded attendees that 200 police officers are assaulted every day in the U.S., and on average, two officers are shot each day. Over 160 police officers in the U.S. lost their lives last year while performing their duties with bravery, honor, and dedication.
Terrell Police Department Chief Jody Lay called law enforcement officers, “servant leaders in our community”, and he thanked the surviving family members of the fallen officers. He shared a personal story of a Garland Police Officer he had trained as a rookie, Officer Michael “David” Moore. In 1997 Officer Moore responded to a call about a suspicious person at a bank in Garland. Garland had been hit by a rash of violent bank robberies and Officer Moore was determined to catch them before they wound up killing a citizen.
Chief Lay told a remarkable story of bravery as he choked up while describing Moore's final moments. The officer approached and started frisking the suspect in the bank, but the suspect turned on him and fired multiple rounds under the officer's arm. The officer bear hugged the suspect and jumped out a plate-glass window with him, in order to get him and the gunfire away from the 30 plus civilians inside the bank. The suspect subsequently fired additional rounds into Officer Moore, killing him. The bank robber turned murderer, was shot and apprehended by Moore's partner. He was later executed on death row. Lay told the crowd, “The coroner's report showed something strange, the first round the suspect fired had gone right through Officer Moore's heart, officially, he was killed by the first shot...but still he fought the suspect...Officer Moore summoned the courage and strength to finish the job.”
After Chief Lay walked away from the podium, nine officers from local agencies each read a name of a Texas officer killed in the line of duty in 2011 and 2012. The American flag and Texas flag were lowered to half-staff by two somber KCSO deputies who are members of the honor guard. The additional KCSO honor guard team of seven, fired three shots each for a 21 gun salute, and a trumpeter played “Taps”. That sad moment was quickly followed by a sound often heard at the funerals of police officers: a lone bagpiper playing “Amazing Grace”.
