February 17, 2008
Notes from fallen SWAT officer's memorial
A friend forwarded to me an e-mail from a Los Angeles Police Officer who attended Friday's memorial service for slain SWAT officer Randal Simmons. I thought it was worth reprinting portions of what he had to say about the day.
I am a PIII assigned to LAPD's Facilities Management Division. We're the ones that design and build new police facilities. I wanted to pass along some observations for people that weren't able to make it to Randy's funeral yesterday.
The services were set to start at 1100 hours, but the Department had asked that we get there sooner. When I rolled through Southeast that morning at 0600 hours, they were already leaving on a chartered bus going straight to the site. The Department shut down all N/B traffic on Vermont Avenue from south of Florence.
I parked on Vermont Avenue around 66th Street. Our cars were parked blocking N/B #1, #2 and #3 lanes, for blocks. I walked down Vermont Avenue to the Church. I was struck by how quiet it was out on Vermont Avenue. I've been out on Vermont during the day and night and it's usually just as busy and loud as any other major LA boulevard. But this morning, it was almost eerily quiet. The only sound was the distant thump of rotor blades on news helicopters in a high orbit, filming the scene. Some of the local residents came out, and were sitting quietly as we passed by. A few said hello, including small children that said hello to us. None of the questions about "is that the same stick they beat Rodney King with?" like we used to get back in the mid-1990's. Everybody was respectful and quiet, occasionally saying respectful or nice things to us or giving us a or sympathetic polite smile. If you said hello or good morning, you'd get it right back. People knew what we were there for.
We got into the service, and the inside of the Church was so large and vast, it reminded me of the dome built to house the Spruce Goose some years ago down in Long Beach. Seating for 10,000. All filled. There were separate sections for the family, in-state or out-of-state law enforcement and then further subdivided by LAPD divisions or units.
There was a moment that I think was noteworthy. Early on in the services, [LAPD Chief William] Bratton got up and was making introductions of the dignitaries that were there. The chief was speaking in hushed tones, almost a whisper. He noted the presence of the governor, the mayor, board of police commissioners, etc. It was very quiet. He made his way down the list and said "... former chief Bernard Parks, former chief Darryl Gates ..." at that moment, there were four huge Jumbotron TV's spread around the dome, and Darryl's face showed up on the screen. It was like an explosion. People (me included) literally jumped out of their seats applauding Darryl. This went on for about a full minute, cheering and applauding him. It's interesting to note that [in] today's LAPD, literally 50% of the officers have less than five years on the job. So most of them were probably all too young, or some may have literally been in diapers or not even born some 16 years ago, when he was ousted as Chief.
I've always felt like he got scape-goated by the city politicians that were looking to hang somebody, never mind the fact that they spent 20+ years undermining the Department and stripping our budget until we were so badly depleted that we didn't have the resources to do "community policing", footbeats, etc. These were the same people that would go on TV almost every night and rail against the latest outrage committed by the LAPD. They were on the city council, yet were throwing bricks at us, like they were outsiders looking in. I remember they seemed to rarely ever support their own police department.
I noted that Bernard Parks walked out of the ceremony alone, not long after this. He walked right by our section on his way out the door, and I noted that out of the hundred of officers he walked by, not one person smiled, waved or even acknowledged his presence. Sometimes I almost feel sorry for the guy.
I've seen a few of these kinds of events, and I wondered to myself early on if any references to the 1970's SWAT television show I remembered would come up. Sure enough, this was it. They played the theme to SWAT, with photos of Randy and other members of SWAT doing their thing. I know it might sound hokey, since we look at a lot of 70's era things today as kind of campy, but it really wasn't. It was really one of those moments when I was proud to be part of the LAPD. Not the "federal consent decree LAPD", but the "world-leader in law enforcement/ uniform and badge recognizable anywhere on the globe/ "go to guys" for all other police on the planet LAPD." Randy was one of those guys that made the LAPD legends a living and breathing reality, and not just some fake thing Hollywood dreamed up. He was the real deal.
What came next astounded me.
When the services were over, we piled out of the Church, and slowly made our way back to our cars. Took a little while, since there were so many of us. I remember walking out on to Vermont Avenue, and as I looked north, all I could see was a sea of blue uniforms, thousands of us, stretching from one curb to the other, and going up the road for blocks. I haven't seen this many LAPD officers in one place, at one time, since the DNC, almost ten years ago now. It was incredible.
We had cops there from all over America and even international. I saw San Francisco PD, lot of LA and surrounding counties police and sheriff's, out of state police and sheriff's departments, including guys wearing the gray uniforms with the old-style "bull harness" cross-straps on their Sam Brownes, I think from Vermont or other back east states. Canadian police. The Israeli's sent a SWAT team if you can believe it. Every kind of color combination of uniforms. Too numerous to list. It was just amazing. LAFD came out, and had a couple of full-length engines with the ladders in the up position, with a huge American flag.
We loaded up into the cars, and after some time went by, we slowly peeled off, going N/B on Vermont, all the way up to Slauson, then W/B on Slauson. People came out of their homes and businesses, THOUSANDS OF THEM, as we went by. There were dozens at every single intersection, usually standing near LAFD engines and crews that put on their Sunday best for us. Some had cameras or videocameras. But this wasn't lookie-loo crap at the scene of a bloody T/C [traffic collision]. These people waved at us. They carried signs supporting us and supporting Randy. They brought out AMERICAN FLAGS and held them up. AMERICAN FLAGS!!!!!! Every size, ranging from a small paper flag decoration I saw one grandmother holding up towards us, to full-size garrison flags you'd see in front of a military base. They held them up and waved them at us. I saw men, looked like had been veterans, that came out in civilian clothes and saluted us as we went by. I have been in dozens of other police processions over the last twenty years, in OC and LA and the only time I ever saw anything like this was in OC. I have never seen anything like this in LA on this scale. Ever.
It was simply amazing.
We finished the grave side services, in the same ways that are typical, Honor Guard, missing man formation, bagpipes from Emerald Society, twin buglers playing taps, etc. We did have something unique though, when they released approximately 70 white doves. Randy's daughter released
the first, and then they released the rest.The graveside services were touching; most of us were crying for Randy until the end. When they were over, we filed out with only a little quiet conversation.
We'll miss Randy to be sure. He was an inspiring man and police officer.
Posted by Mike Lief at February 17, 2008 11:33 AM
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Comments
I watched the live feed of this funeral. I was very moved by the very first thing the pastor said..."Let's give Randy a hand for a life well lived..."
It was such a reminder that not all of us are going to grow old. Some of us will go before we are ready. The key is to do live life well.
This guy was by all accounts a phenomenal father, husband, son, brother, brother in law and cop. What an example he must have set to the inner city kids (and EVERYONE Else!) that he tutored, mentored and loved.
The message is clear, we should live life well.
Posted by: RW at February 17, 2008 01:39 PM
“He has honor if he holds himself to an ideal of conduct though it is inconvenient, unprofitable, or dangerous to do so.”
-An American, Circa 1890's
Posted by: Cyrus at February 17, 2008 11:42 PM