The lives of five police officers killed in the line of duty were honored in various ways across Dallas.
Eight years ago, Dallas saw the deadliest attack on law enforcement in the United States since the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers in 2001.
Dallas police officers Lorne Ahrens, Michael Krol, Michael Smith, and Patrick Zamarripa, as well as DART officer Brent Thompson, were killed in an ambush during a protest in Downtown Dallas on July 7, 2016.
The gunman opened fire at around 9 p.m., fatally shooting the victims while wounding 11 more — nine of whom were police officers. Ultimately, the shooter neutralized with explosives at around 1:30 a.m., putting an end to the standoff at Dallas College’s El Centro Campus.
“It’s definitely a day that will live in infamy not only for our department but for our members,” remarked Dallas Police Association President Jaime Castro, per CBS News Texas.
“We do hope that the community remembers what we do and the sacrifices that not only we make but our families make,” he added.
On Saturday, several DPD officers participated in the Run For The Blue 5K, an initiative launched to help support the victims’ families and other officers affected by the 2016 attack. The Dallas skyline also shone blue on Sunday night to honor the five officers’ sacrifice, and on Monday morning, the El Centro Campus held a ceremony in remembrance.
As extensively covered in The Dallas Express, DPD has long been understaffed, with Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia citing recruitment and retention issues in an interview with DX last year.
Roughly 3,000 officers are currently fielded, even though a City analysis determined that, based on population size, Dallas needed a force of around 4,000 officers to ensure public safety.
Discrepancies in crime reported in Downtown Dallas compared to Fort Worth’s city center, which is patrolled by a special police unit working in collaboration with private security guards, attest to the impact of this shortfall. The former regularly logs higher rates of motor vehicle theft, assaults, and more.
Nevertheless, Dallas City leaders approved a budget of just $654 million for DPD this fiscal year. This is much less taxpayer money allocated towards law enforcement than the sums seen in other high-crime cities, such as Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City.