“He was a shining example of how to do it the right way,” said friend and fellow fraternity brother Keio Gamble.
DALLAS — Hundreds of people came to the location where Officer Darron Burks was shot and killed off East Ledbetter Drive in Dallas.
The vigil was organized by his fraternity brothers with Omega Psi Phi. His fraternity brothers donned royal purple shirts and the officers who worked with Burks wore their police uniforms.
“The uniform made him that final hero,” said a woman who knew Darron personally.
Just after 10 p.m. Thursday, the Dallas police officer was shot and killed while on duty in his vehicle. Burks was pronounced dead at Methodist, police said.
The gunman shot and injured two other officers with the department’s South Central Patrol Division. One of the officers had to undergo surgery and she remains in the hospital in critical condition, police said. The third officer has since been released from the hospital.
“He was a shining example of how to do it the right way,” said friend and fellow fraternity brother Keio Gamble.
Burks studied at Paul Quinn College and went on to become a teacher. He worked closely with kids at the Texans Can Academy before he decided to start his career as a police officer.
“He never drank, he never smoked…he was high on life,” said one fraternity brother.
Omega Psi Phi set out his shoes and his hat at the vigil.
“We wanted to make sure he was represented here,” said Gamble.
The community is mostly in shock. Many people WFAA spoke with said the news of Burks’ passing had spread quickly that Friday morning.
“I can’t believe this is happening. It’s so unreal,” said a woman who identifies as practically a sister.