Officer shot in the line of duty

BAMFMeredith

The other morning a local police officer, Jaime Padron was shot in the chest (his bulletproof vest protected him) and neck at a WalMart store here in Austin. He was responding to a call about a drunk man inside the store at about 2:30 am, and the moment the suspect saw Officer Padron, he pulled out his gun and fired on him. Padron didn't even have time to draw his own gun, and died immediately. Fortunately, the suspect didn't get away, as the WalMart employees tackled the guy and waited for more police to show up.

Yesterday, this was the scene on busy I-35 in the middle of Austin during the funeral procession for Officer Padron. This picture captures it so well, but seeing it in person was just incredible. The entire city stopped yesterday and people were pulled over on overpasses, out of their cars, just standing and watching and honoring this fallen officer. It was a really moving time. Officer Padron left behind a wife and 2 daughters, ages 10 and 6. Despite how corrupt police can be and how there are some bad officers, remember, these men and women risk their lives every single day to keep us safe. So policemen and women, hats off to you guys today, and thank you for what you do!!

Tuffjourney

God Bless him!

xxx_Pink_Princess_xxx

WOW! x

kt2007

I am a US Soldier so I can really appreciate this. They deserve the respect also for going out doing what they do. Great pic.

❤lindsay❤dawn❤

Amen...

blink1021

Wow really moving. So sad hate to hear that sort of thing especially with children.

interceptor311

The other morning a local police officer, Jaime Padron was shot in the chest (his bulletproof vest protected him) and neck at a WalMart store here in Austin. He was responding to a call about a drunk man inside the store at about 2:30 am, and the moment the suspect saw Officer Padron, he pulled out his gun and fired on him. Padron didn't even have time to draw his own gun, and died immediately. Fortunately, the suspect didn't get away, as the WalMart employees tackled the guy and waited for more police to show up.

Yesterday, this was the scene on busy I-35 in the middle of Austin during the funeral procession for Officer Padron. This picture captures it so well, but seeing it in person was just incredible. The entire city stopped yesterday and people were pulled over on overpasses, out of there cars, just standing and watching and honoring this fallen officer. It was a really moving time. Officer Padron left behind a wife and 2 daughters, ages 10 and 6. Despite how corrupt police can be and how there are some bad officers, remember, these men and women risk their lives every single day to keep us safe. So policemen and women, hats off to you guys today, and thank you for what you do!!

I've been in too many of these processions. It is much appreciated to see that much support at all of them. Thanks for all of the support. :-)

Doreen_Murray

Beautiful picture and thanks for sharing this!

SeasideOasis

Very moving...Its always sad to hear about a fallen officer...

Shannon023

:brokenheart:

Lovely picture, thanks for posting.

shedoos

Amen-

And thanks to all who serve.

fitzie63

Prayers to his family.

EmCarroll1990

I sincerely admire the respect and togetherness you Americans have for your service people (this too includes officers). Teared up a bit looking at that photo. I think here, it would have been a smaller crowd.

carpp107

Meredith,

There are no other occupations that show as much support for their comrades as Police Officers. My Step-Father was killed in the line of duty July 7, 2010 and know first hand the overwhelming outpouring of love from the Police community and the public as well. The hurt never goes away but neither does the support from the Police....They are amazing people!!!!!

-Rob Carpp

tiptoeketo

Great post- a very nice read to start off the day.

:flowerforyou:

Tropical_Turtle

This touches my heart immensely. Thank you for posting and showing that yes, people do care.

God bless his family.

pucenavel

...and our society continues to glamorize the use of a dangerous, highly addictive and easily obtained drug (alcohol), and we continue to fight against any form of gun control.

w_i_n_d_y

My heart goes out to his family and your community.

kapeluza

Wow, that is very moving.

jenlarz

I have so much respect for the people that serve this country, wether it be at home or overseas. We owe so much to so many. I love to see this kind of respect. Thanks for sharing!

Sh1tsRainbows

it!!!!!! Thank you!!!!

bluefever

This was a really nice post being married to an officer it really hits home. Though you could have done without the whole "despite cops being corrupt" thing.

Way to show your respect. That was comment was extremely disrespectfull.

oddyogi

This was a really nice post. Very touching. Very sad as well. I hope the drunk man gets what he deserves.

Texas does the death penalty right?

BAMFMeredith

This was a really nice post being married to an officer it really hits home. Though you could have done without the whole "despite cops being corrupt" thing.

Way to show your respect. That was comment was extremely disrespectfull.

I said they CAN be. Not all of them, and not all the time. I think cops get a bad rap (at least here they do) and a lot of people I know don't like the police. Re-read what I said, you'll see I was defending police officers.

amiehampton29

Love this. This happened in my hometown (in TEXAS of course) for a soldier last month and a few months ago for a fallen firefighter. It is wonderful to see that people still appreciate those who risk their lives for us daily!

Bluefever - I know Mere and she was not attempting to be disrespectful. Just trying to remind people that even though you hear of corruption in law enforcement, that most officers are out there doing their jobs and protecting us. Take a deep breath and calm down.

BAMFMeredith

This was a really nice post. Very touching. Very sad as well. I hope the drunk man gets what he deserves.

Texas does the death penalty right?

We do, but not as liberally as people would assume. A drunk guy who shot an officer probably won't get the death penalty...that's more reserved for pre-meditated murder.

lindalee0315

My father was a police officer in Michigan during the Detroit riots in the 1960s before I was born. Then we moved to Florida where he was undercover narcotics. When one of their own was killed, every single county sent at least one representative to the funeral. The dress blues are always impressive, but it was always equally moving to see how many "civilians" showed up just to silently pay their respects. Yes, there are "bad" cops. But there are so many more good ones. My dad once told me that the most dangerous part of the job was actually traffic stops, statistically speaking.

jwkime

As a wife of a police officer, thank you for posting. Few people know what risks they take everyday in both large cities and small towns. Even in a small town in the midwest my husband has run into burning buildings to pull people to safety and had guns pulled on him during confrontations. My heart goes out to the family and the law enforcement community. May they have peace.

bankstisha

Prayers to this mans family, community and brothers/sisters in blue!

hellraisedfire

That is so sad! I hope his family and friends find peace in what a respectful person he was and how proud everyone is of him! This picture will speak volumes for a long time.

nakabi

This was a really nice post being married to an officer it really hits home. Though you could have done without the whole "despite cops being corrupt" thing.

Way to show your respect. That was comment was extremely disrespectfull.

I don't believe the OP was being disrespectful at all. I believe that most people will agree that there are corrupt police officers, but the majority are not. The OP said "some" officers, not all.