Hundreds Attend Funeral Service for Border Agent Terry
Hundreds Attend Funeral Service for Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry
Updated: Wednesday, 22 Dec 2010, 10:41 PM EST
Published : Wednesday, 22 Dec 2010, 2:40 PM EST
By ROBIN SCHWARTZ
WJBK | myFOXDetroit.com
DETROIT (WJBK) - Law enforcement officers from around the country converged on Detroit Wednesday to remember a fallen hero. U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry died serving his country.
Hundreds of people packed Detroit's Greater Grace Temple for an emotional funeral service. U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano was among the mourners.
It was a surreal and stunning scene outside Greater Grace Temple. Federal agents lined the entrance to the church as the hearse carrying Terry's body arrived.
Inside bagpipes played as the 40-year-old's flag-draped coffin was wheeled into place for an emotional funeral and celebration of his life.
"Brian Terry lived and died a hero and a warrior," said Michigan State Police Sergeant Dan Bowman.
"Brian died protecting others from people that would prey on them," said Kurt Martin, Terry's longtime friend.
Terry was shot and killed on December 14 on the United States-Mexico border during a gun battle with a gang known for targeting illegal immigrants and drug smugglers. Four suspects are now in custody. Others are still being sought.
"He knew the dangers of this job, but he went knowing what he was doing made a difference not for himself, but for others," Martin said.
"We resolve, I resolve, to pursue swift justice for those responsible for his death, and we resolve, I resolve, to do everything in our power to protect those who put their lives on the line every day for our nation's safety and security," said Napolitano.
Terry leaves behind his parents, a brother and two sisters, as well as countless men and women in uniform who are vowing to honor his legacy. They have said he was an all or nothing kind of guy who lived life to the fullest and would help in any way he could.
Terry was a 1988 graduate of Flat Rock High School. He served with the Marines and then worked with the Ecorse and Lincoln Park police departments before being hired by the U.S. Border Patrol.
Some of his closest friends spoke during the funeral. One read a passage Terry wrote about himself.
"If today is the day, so be it. If you seek to do battle with me this day, you will receive the best that I am capable of giving," Bowman said. "You may kill me, but I'm willing to die if necessary. I do not fear death for I have been close enough to it on enough occasions that it no longer concerns me. What I do fear is the loss of my honor and would rather die fighting than have it said that I was without courage."
Following the funeral, a seemingly endless line of law enforcement vehicles with lights flashing streamed down Seven Mile Road in Detroit. Even as this was taking place, the Justice Department and Mexican authorities were hunting down the rest of the suspects who took this hero's life.
WITH VIDEO REPORT:
http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/dpp/news/lo ... 01222-wpms
