People who spoke at his funeral service spoke of not just his service as an officer, but that of all law enforcement officers around the world.
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Just days before he was shot and killed, Jackson posted an emotional Facebook message saying he was “physically and emotionally” exhausted and expressing how hard it was to be both a police officer and a black man.
Garafola, a 45-year-old East Baton Rouge Parish sheriff’s deputy, will be laid to rest Saturday, one day after hundreds of people turned out for a funeral service for Baton Rouge police Officer Matthew Gerald, 41. Additional mourners, many of them law enforcement officers from around the country, stood along the church walls.
Governor John Bel Edwards quoted scripture from the book of Joshua: “Be strong and courageous says the Lord”.
Sheriff Sid Gautreaux (gOH-troh) called him courageous, compassionate, fearless and benevolent.
Garafola left his protected position to try to help the injured officer.
Local deputies and police officers are reminded of the potential dangers in light of recent police shootings in Baton Rouge and Dallas.
Three other officers were also wounded in the shooting. Multiple police officers were killed and wounded Sunday morning in a shooting near a gas station in Baton Rouge, less than two weeks after a black man was shot and killed by police here, sparking nightly protests across the city.
The line of mourners snaked through hallways in the 1,500-seat sanctuary at Istrouma Baptist Church, out the back door and into the parking lot.
Two police officers and two sheriff’s deputies came from the Seattle, Washington area. He was dressed in Scottish regalia for a pipe band that played “Amazing Grace” outside the church after four helicopters flew over in salute. The funeral for another Baton Rouge Police Department member, Montrell Jackson, is set for Monday.
He described Garafola as a generous family man.
“My deputy went down fighting”, Gautreaux said.
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Hinds County Sheriff Victor Mason warns that targeting police has happened before and he said the question is when and where it will happen again. News stories displayed here appear in our category for US Headlines and are licensed via a specific agreement between LongIsland.com and The Associated Press, the world’s oldest and largest news organization. Please see our terms of service for more information.
