2 Police Officers Killed by Train While Chasing Suspected Gunman a Week Before Christmas

Photo: Facebook

“We have two young officers with young families,” said Mayor Rahm Emanuel. “This holiday will never be the same for those two families. There are no words that can express the grief, the sense of loss. It just knocks you back on your heels. As we go about our time with our families, let us remind ourselves that there are others who cannot.”

“While doing the most dangerous thing any police officer can do, and that is to chase an individual with a gun, these brave young men were consumed with identifying a potential threat to their community andput the safety of others above their own,” superintendent Eddie Johnson said in a press conference on Monday, adding that the train that hit them was likely going around 70 miles per hour at the time.

The men were the third and fourth Chicago police officers to die while on duty this year.

Cmdr. Paul Bauer, 53, was shot and killed while pursuing a suspect on foot outside the Thompson Center on Feb. 13,ABC News reported. On Nov. 19, officer Samuel Jimenez, 28, died at Mercy Hospital after being shot in the neck while trying to protect others during a shooting at the medical center.

“This has been an immensely difficult year for the Chicago police department, and especially the men and woman of the fifth district, who have faced tragedy after tragedy this year,” Johnson said at Monday’s press conference. “So I’m asking all of you in Chicago to pray for the families of these two heroic young men. And please say a prayer for the men and women of the fifth district, who even tonight will stop at nothing to safeguard their community.”

Edward Brown.Chicago Police Department

The suspect Marmolejo and Gary were chasing, 24-year-old Edward Brown, was eventuallydetained on two felony chargesof reckless discharge of a firearm as well as endangerment and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, police said.

On Thursday, Brown — whoworks as a line cook and has no criminal record— appeared in court, where a judge ordered that he be held on a $200,000 bond. He’s since beenreleased from a detention facility, arrest records show.

If convicted, Brown faces up to three years in prison, NBC Chicago reported, though Chicago’s Fraternal Order of Police has pushed for an increase in his charges to include murder. He’s next due in court on Dec. 27.

Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Guy Lisuzzo said Brown was heading home from work when he allegedly found a .380-caliber handgun in an alley, NBC Chicago reported. Lisuzzo said Brown carried the weapon onto some train tracks and fired it into the air.

Upon seeing Marmolejo and Gary, who were responding to the call, arrive in their vehicle, Brown allegedly ran up the embankment.

“My client had no intention of anybody getting hurt,” Frank Kosturos, Brown’s attorney, told reporters, NBC Chicago reported. “What happened to these officers was completely unforeseeable. It wasn’t a violent felony, he wasn’t committing a forcible felony. He was shooting a gun off in the air. He was committing a Class 4 reckless discharge.”

Meanwhile, Marmolejo and Gary have both been laid to rest. Gary’s funeral was held on Friday, while Marmolejo’s was on Saturday.

Members of the 5th Districtwere supposed to be celebrating their holiday party on Friday, but instead united to mourn their colleagues,The Chicago Tribunereported.

Photos and video from the funerals were shared to the Chicago Police’s Facebook and Twitter pages. The most emotional clips showed hundreds of members of the community who lined the streets along the funeral’s processions to pay their respects.

source: people.com