Police Officer Ricardo Galvez

This week my class was given the task of preparing a note in memory of a fallen officer on the grinder by our RTU staff. For some reason, your name stuck out like a sore thumb from the many names on the wall. I could not explain it at the time why your name stuck out from the bunch, but a gut feeling told me that I had to look up your story. After some research on what had happened that led to your end of watch, I understood that gut feeling I was getting. Even now, it is difficult to convey my thoughts into words as I try to type this.

I remember a while back before starting the academy, a friend of mine who is a peace officer told me that this job is unforgiving and that I should always keep my head on a swivel regardless if I'm on or off duty. The perpetrators who targeted you were not even aware that you were a police officer and according to news sources, you were not in uniform nor armed. The perpetrators were apparently fleeing a scene and just wanted to rob you. Such incidents like this upset me because I think why is it that the best people are always taken away by people who shouldn't be around. I regularly remind myself that I too must always keep my head on a swivel and made it a daily habit to always be aware of my surroundings. It is my hope that one day I too can live up to the positive qualities you had for your fellow officers and community.

Recruit Perez
LASD CLASS 437

April 5, 2019