Thread: CA:Thousands honor slain deputy

There's no mention of immigration violation in this case but definitely a gang connection. This area is saturated with illegals and gangs; it's a huge problem here in the Central Valley. Another of our fine police officers has fallen because of it: Detective Kent Haws.



JOHN WALKER / THE FRESNO BEE
Tulare County Sheriff Bill Wittman pauses to collect himself as he pays tribute to slain detective Kent Haws at today's funeral service in Visalia.

Thousands honor slain deputyBy Tim Sheehan and Tim Bragg / The Fresno Bee12/21/07 15:09:37


3:12 p.m.: VISALIA — A sea of law-enforcement officers from as far as San Diego dominated an overflow crowd approaching 2,000 people to offer an emotional tribute to a fallen comrade today.

The funeral of Tulare County sheriff’s detective Kent Haws, who was shot and killed Monday north of Ivanhoe, offered an occasion for tears, laughter, anger and questions as friends, relatives and colleagues offered their recollections at Visalia Assembly of God church.

Hundreds of officers began lining up as early as 8:30 a.m. — forming a sea of blue and green — to prepare for the arrival of Haws' casket. The funeral began at 10 a.m.

As mourners gathered inside, family snapshots showed Haws playing with kids and family; working with the Sheriff's Tactical Enforcement Patrol (STEP) team; and clowning with friends. A large portrait of Haws in the front of the church was surrounded by flowers.

Outside, a large flag was hoisted over Akers Street by a pair of fire ladder trucks. The funeral procession carrying Haws' casket drove under the flag just before 10 a.m., when the funeral was scheduled to begin, escorted by six motorcycle officers and several sheriff's patrol cars.

All the officers stood at attention as pallbearers carried the flag-draped casket into the church, followed by family members. A lone bagpipe played. The officers then began filing slowly into the church.

Many inside held small flags in honor of Haws' "end of watch."

Members of the STEP team formed an honor guard on the stage behind the casket. Haws was assigned for the past three years to the team, which serves as the county's SWAT unit and takes on special assignments such as search and rescue, marijuana eradication and gang-enforcement.

Haws' widow and children then came in and sat in the front, next to his casket.

Those who could not fit in the church's sanctuary stood in the lobby, where speakers and video monitors were posted.

"I don't have a poem that will bring comfort to anyone," Tulare County Sheriff Bill Wittman said as he struggled to control his shaking voice. "I just have a note here that says, 'Don't lose it.' "

Wittman described his thoughts each time he observed Haws on duty. "Jeez, he's squared away," he recalled, pointing out Haws' demeanor of authority with crew-cut hair and flawless uniform. "And then my second thought was, 'He could never work undercover.' "

"I'm just so angry that such a thing could happen," Wittman said, thinking back to Monday, when Haws was shot and killed by a gunman while checking something suspicious near Ivanhoe as he was on his way home from duty.

"Something caught his attention ... and we'll never know what it was," Wittman added. "He did his job; we would expect no less."

Wittman pledged to Haws' family in the front row — his wife Francisca and three sons — that the law enforcement community "will forever be there for you."

And he praised Haws' mother, Wanda Broesder of Montana, "for raising a fine young man."

"He was a warrior and a law enforcement officer," Wittman said. "He was born to do this."

Wittman's voice cracked as he continued: "I know in my heart Kent saved the life of someone else," he said, noting the suspect arrested was carrying a loaded gun. "I will always believe he did not die in vain."

The two-hour service also reflected the lighter side of Haws' life.

Visalia police agent Greg Byerlee, a boyhood friend of Kent Haws, recalled happier days growing up down the street in grade school, riding bicycles and having dirt-clod fights with one another.

As they reached high school, "I remember firecrackers in months other than July ... and silk shirts, bell-bottoms so big you couldn't see our feet, and all-night skates at Roller Towne," Byerlee said. "We were studs."

"We were cruising Mooney Boulevard in a metallic, four-door Dodge Dart," he said, and smiled. "That's how we rolled."

He recounted one story of a teen-age confrontation the pair had with two other boys over the attention of two girls. "He told me, 'I'll take the big one,' " Byerlee said.

Even as the church funeral service continued for Haws, mourners and supporters stood on overpasses crossing Highway 198 awaiting the funeral motorcade headed to Exeter Cemetery.

About 15 to 20 people stood atop overpasses at Chinowth and Demaree streets. Five to 10 people lined overpasses at Woodland Drive, Mooney Boulevard and Giddings Street, among others throughout Visalia.

Further east, several dozen motorists parked their cars along the frontage roads of the highway between Visalia and Farmersville. Two Farmersville police patrol cars parked atop the Farmersville Boulevard overpass. An American flag hung from the bridge.

About 200 people braved cold and windy weather to line Pine Street in downtown Exeter. Many in the crowd held American flags. Flags were attached to light poles along the streets.

About 1:30, the funeral procession arrived at the cemetery, followed by hundreds of police cars and motorcycles, along with the vehicles of family and friends.

All the officers stood at attention, while the flag from Haws' coffin was folded and given to his wife. Haws' mother also received a flag. The hourlong cemetery service also included a 21-gun salute and the playing of taps.

Sheriff's Lt. Mike Boudreaux spoke afterward about how Haws was a valued member of the STEP team, and will be sorely missed — both professionally and personally.

"We get through it by spending time with each other," Boudreaux said, "by spending time talking about what Kent meant to us as a brother. And I don't use the term 'brother' lightly."

As a deputy, Haws was very detail-oriented, he said.

"He wouldn't have overlooked anything," Boudreaux said. "That's why he stopped on the day he died."

The man suspected of killing Haws remains in jail without bail. Jorge Gomez Banda, 20, of Ivanhoe, now faces a possible death sentence if convicted of all the counts he faces, including first-degree murder, gang enhancements and a special charge of killing a police officer.

"I don't have a poem that will bring comfort to anyone," Tulare County Sheriff Bill Wittman said as he struggled to control his shaking voice. "I just have a note here that says, 'Don't lose it.' "

Wittman described his thoughts each time he observed Haws on duty. "Jeez, he's squared away," he recalled, pointing out Haws' demeanor of authority with crew-cut hair and flawless uniform. "And then my second thought was, 'He could never work undercover.' "

"I'm just so angry that such a thing could happen," Wittman said, thinking back to Monday, when Haws was shot and killed by a gunman while checking something suspicious near Ivanhoe as he was on his way home from duty.

"Something caught his attention ... and we'll never know what it was," Wittman added. "He did his job; we would expect no less."

Wittman pledged to Haws' family in the front row — his wife Francisca and three sons — that the law enforcement community "will forever be there for you."

And he praised Haws' mother, Wanda Broesder of Montana, "for raising a fine young man."

"He was a warrior and a law enforcement officer," Wittman said. "He was born to do this."

Wittman's voice cracked as he continued: "I know in my heart Kent saved the life of someone else," he said, noting the suspect arrested was carrying a loaded gun. "I will always believe he did not die in vain."


http://www.fresnobee.com/updates/photo/ ... 82300.html

This is so sad.. .day after day more and more good citizens falling to the invasion