Dallas police officer Darron Burks, who was fatally shot in what the police chief called an execution, was remembered Saturday as a hero during a funeral service in Dallas.
“A hero who made the ultimate sacrifice … the grief is overwhelming,” Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia said during the nearly two-hour service that was often punctuated by applause for Burks’ mother, Cherie Jeffery, and laughter at memories of Burks.
“He loved me every day, he didn’t wait for my birthday” or various holidays, Jeffery said as she stood next to a portrait of Burks in his uniform, adding that her son texted her every day. “Darron loved everyone.”
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson said Burks was “tragically taken, targeted” because he was a police officer.
Burks was “a hero … with a spirit of service and selflessness,” Johnson said.
Bagpipes played and mourners streamed past his open casket draped with an American flag and uniformed police at either end until the casket was closed for the service.
Burks, 46, was sitting in his patrol car on August 29 when he was fatally shot by 30-year-old Corey Cobb-Bey, who spoke briefly with Burks and recorded the encounter before pulling out a gun and shooting Burks, according to police.
“I know the word ambush has been thrown around … that’s not what happened here,” Garcia said after the shooting. “Officer Burks was executed.”
Cobb-Bey shot and wounded two other officers when they arrived, then fled the scene and was pursued by police to Lewisville, Texas, about 25 miles northwest of Dallas, police said.
When Cobb-Bey’s vehicle stopped on Interstate 35, he got out with a shotgun in hand and pointed it at officers. Six officers opened fire, killing Cobb-Bey, who was struck several times, police said.
Burks joined the police force in December after graduating from the police academy. He previously spent 17 years as a high school math teacher.
Gov. Greg Abbott, at Johnson’s request, said Texas state and U.S. flags could be lowered to half-staff Saturday to honor Burks.
“The First Lady and I offer comfort to the Burks family in their time of grief, and we urge all Texans to remember and honor Officer Burks’ service as a dedicated and trusted law enforcement officer,” Abbott said in a letter to Johnson.