Officer Down: Officer Down: Police Officer Nathaniel Taylor Jr.
Officer Down: Officer Richard Francis
The Chicago Tribune
Editorial
CHICAGO — Two police officers have been gunned down in the line of duty since July. Two families in mourning. Two more stars enshrined at police headquarters.
When tragedies like these happen, it is easy for people to ignore them. It is easy to say, this is the profession the police officers chose and they knew the dangers. And yes, it’s easy to be distracted -- the economy is in deep trouble, the baseball playoffs are under way, a presidential election campaign is peaking, a million errands and obligations beckon.
Set that all aside for a moment to learn something about Nathaniel Taylor Jr. He was killed Sunday morning by a suspect who had served three years in prison for the attempted murder of another Chicago police officer in 1990 -- an attempt that took place in the same neighborhood, and almost the same spot, where Taylor was shot.
Nathaniel Taylor will be buried on Friday. He was 39.
He had a 5-year-old daughter and a legion of friends, inside and outside the department, who describe him as unfailingly generous. He was known as a workhorse and a mentor, a believer in education who was a handful of classes away from an MBA. A 14-year veteran who never shirked a tough assignment.
Taylor racked up commendations and awards and most important, the respect of his peers. He was a good cop, and that is not faint praise.
Taylor, like many cops, divided the world into two camps -- bad guys and good guys. As we learned after his death, he believed his mission was as much to protect the good people in the neighborhoods as to catch those who prey on them. And in Englewood, there’s no shortage of good people being preyed upon by criminals.
The suspect in his murder, Lamar Cooper, headed the neighborhood watch association, helped rally neighbors to install speed bumps on the street and was known for keeping a meticulous lawn. But he was also a felon with a hefty rap sheet, last released from prison in December 2004 after a burglary conviction. Police, including Taylor, were about to raid Cooper’s home early Sunday when Cooper allegedly opened fire.
He was charged Monday with first-degree murder.
There’s no need to exaggerate the dangers facing every cop every day. You can be shot and killed in a struggle with a woman who caused a disturbance with a CTA bus passenger less than a block from a police station, as Officer Richard Francis was in early July. You can be shot and killed in your car while off-duty, as Detective Robert Soto was in August. You can be killed on a drug raid, as Taylor was.
Today comes the ritual of the funeral, the police stars wrapped in black bands, the bunting draped outside the stations, the condolences and the tears.
We’ll learn more about Taylor, as a man, a friend, a cop. It is a way to celebrate officers like Taylor who serve with distinction, who served unflinchingly. He -- and all those who close ranks now -- deserve nothing less.
Copyright 2008 The Chicago Tribune