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                 Dallas Lays to Rest Policemen Killed by Sniper

   by Ken Bredemeier, Mary Alice Salinas

   Funerals for three of the five police officers killed in last week's
   sniper attack in Dallas, Texas, are being held Wednesday, with hundreds
   of law enforcement officials paying their last respects to their fallen
   comrades.

   At the first of the funerals, there was a montage of photos depicting
   the life of 43-year-old Brent Thompson, an officer for the Dallas rapid
   transit system, at a Dallas megachurch.

   Funerals were set later for two city policemen, Lorne Ahrens and
   Michael Smith, both among the five gunned down last Thursday by a black
   Army veteran who targeted white policemen in revenge for point-blank
   police shootings of two African American men in other parts of the
   country earlier last week. Funeral services for the other two Dallas
   officers, Michael Krol and Patrick Zamarripa, are set for later in the
   week.

   The funerals were being held a day after President Barack Obama
   commemorated their lives at a memorial gathering in Dallas that also
   was attended by his predecessor, President George W. Bush.

   ''Meeting with law enforcement
   Late Wednesday, Obama is convening a White House meeting in Washington
   with law enforcement officials, civil rights leaders, activists and
   political leaders to discuss ways to restore trust in communities where
   there are tensions between police and the residents they are sworn to
   protect.

   In the southern city of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Cameron Sterling, the
   son of one of the black men killed by local police last week, called
   for people upset about the shooting of his father, Alton Sterling, "to
   protest the right way, protest in peace."

   The 15-year-old described his father as "a good man, and he will always
   be a good man."

   At Tuesday's memorial service, Obama said violence during the past week
   has exposed "the deepest fault line in our democracy."

   In an address that ranged from the dedication of law enforcement
   officers to racial bias in America, Obama said he understood that
   people across Dallas and the country are suffering.

   The president honored the five slain officers and called for unity and
   hope.

   "I understand how Americans are feeling, but Dallas, I'm here to say,
   we must reject such despair," Obama said.

   ''Honest conversation
   He urged the nation to speak "honestly and openly" about the current
   state of race relations, saying we know the overwhelming number of
   police officers is "worthy of our respect, not our scorn."

   Although race relations have improved dramatically in America in recent
   decades, he added, "America, we know bias remains, we know it."

   Five seats were left empty to represent each of the fallen officers
   during a crowded and emotional memorial at the Morton Meyerson Symphony
   Center in Dallas.

   "They were peacemakers in blue; they have died for that cause,"
   proclaimed Mayor Mike Rawlings. "The soul of our city was pierced when
   police officers were ambushed in a cowardly attack." He added, "Today
   must be about unity."

   Former President Bush condemned the "hated and malice" behind the
   attack and called for unity, hope and tolerance in its wake. Bush urged
   Americans to "honor the images of God we see in one another."

   While traveling to Dallas, Obama telephoned the families of both men
   killed by police, the elder Sterling and Philando Castile in the
   Minnesota incident, to offer condolences on behalf of the American
   people.

   "These are legitimate concerns raised by all sides of the issues,"
   White House spokesman Josh Earnest said. "The president is interested
   in trying to push that conversation into concrete action."

   ''Caught on video
   The fatal shootings in Louisiana and Minnesota were captured on video
   and sparked protests across the nation and charges that police
   officers, often white, unfairly target minorities.

   The sniper in Dallas, Micah Johnson, killed the police officers during
   a rally by the Black Lives Matter, a grass-roots movement trying to
   pressure political leaders to take action on police brutality and
   criminal justice reform.

   The president has strongly condemned the use of violence during
   demonstrations, but he has expressed sympathy for their cause.

   Investigators are intensely investigating Johnson's background, trying
   to determine exactly what led to his attacks on the police officers,
   whether there was anything beyond his professed anger at the killings
   of Sterling and Castile. After police negotiations for his surrender
   failed, authorities detonated a bomb on a robot to kill him.

   "We're convinced that this suspect had other plans, and thought that
   what he was doing was righteous and believed that he was going to
   target law enforcement, make us pay for what he saw as law
   enforcement's efforts to punish people of color," Dallas police chief
   David Brown said.

   Bomb-making materials and a rambling journal were found at Johnson's
   home during a search.
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   y-dallas-sniper/3416818.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/funerals-start-for-policemen-killed-by-dallas-sniper/3416818.html