Thousands of mourners are attending services Wednesday, July 13th for three of the five police officers killed last week by a gunman in Dallas.
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A memorial service was also held Wednesday in the Dallas mega-church, The Potter’s House, for Dallas Area Rapid Transit Officer Brent Thompson.
To honor their memory, officers from all over Pittsburgh stood around the Allegheny County Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on the North Shore Wednesday evening. “It’s important that they show support to the people from the Dallas Police Department, the Dallas Area Regional Transit Authority and the families of the victims”.
During the funeral service at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas, fellow officer Debbie Taylor described Ahrens as a “gentle giant” who “strived to be the best, most knowledgeable officer”.
Sgt. Smith will receive another service on Thursday, in the church where he worked as a security guard.
Obama then addressed fears gripping a nation caught in a bitter debate over policing after the recent police killings of two black men, Philando Castile in Minnesota and Alton Sterling in Louisiana, earlier in the week. “Protest in peace…. No violence, whatsoever”.
Dallas police say the officer is stable at Parkland Memorial Hospital.
A funeral service for Thompson, a newlywed, was scheduled for later Wednesday in Corsicana, south of Dallas.
The Chicago Police Department is looking to help the families of the slain Dallas officers and is asking the public to join in.
Justin Bamberg, a lawyer for Sterling’s son, said he hoped the officer who shot Sterling would be criminally charged following the federal investigation into the incident.
Smith had been married for 17 years and had two teenage daughters.
Hundreds of police officers, state troopers and sheriff’s deputies attended, including some from Washington state; Miami Beach, Fla.; Prince George’s County, Md.; San Diego; Tucson, Ariz.; and Loveland, Colo.
After the ceremony, hundreds lined the road to watch as a procession traveled from Plano to Restland Funeral Home and Cemetery in Dallas, WFAA reports.
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Funerals are set to begin for the five officers slain by a sniper during a protest last week in downtown Dallas.
