A Day for Fallen Heroes

Every year when Los Angeles police officers gather for the annual memorial ceremony to honor their fallen comrades, speakers pray fervently that the coming year will not force them to add any more names to the memorial in front of Parker Center.

But almost every year at least two more names are added, and Monday was no different.

About 400 officers and host of dignitaries gathered to pay their respects to Officers Steven Gajda, Joe Rios and the 188 others who have died in the line of duty since 1907 when the Los Angeles Police Department started keeping records.

With flags at half-staff flapping in the cool, brisk wind, 190 officers marched one by one down red carpet to the foot of the memorial, where each placed a single rose in a wreath and then stepped back and snapped a sharp salute.

“It’s difficult every time,” said Belinda Gajda, whose husband, the father of a 7-year-old girl from a previous marriage, was the last to fall in 1997. “It’s a constant reminder of my loss. But it means a great deal, to me. He often said that when he dies, he wanted to die in the line of duty.”

Gajda, 29, a seven-year veteran, died New Year’s Eve when he and two partners went to a Boyle Heights house to break up a loud party.

When Gajda pursued a fleeing 17-year-old, the youth turned and shot him. Gajda and his partners returned fire, killing him.

Bicycle Officer Rios was added to the memorial this year even though he died in 1993 after a seizure. It was later determined that the seizure was caused by injuries Rios suffered in a 1992 on-duty traffic accident, Cmdr. David Kalish said.

Gajda was among 150 law enforcement officers who were killed last year, a 27% increase over 1996.

“To die in the line of duty, to die for your ideals, and often for people you do not even know is the highest . . . [in] public service,” said Chief Bernard C. Parks. “These 190 Los Angeles police officers, should all be remembered for their bravery, but more importantly, for the valor they displayed during their individual moments of truth.

“These officers were dedicated to protecting the people of this city,” the chief added. “A common bond unites us, a kindred spirit compels us to answer the calling that brought them to this profession.”

Kalish said the annual ceremony “really shows how much we care for each other. We will never forget our brother and sister officers.”

Some of the dignitaries on hand for the ceremony included Police Commission Chairwoman Edith Perez, Assistant Deputy Mayor Joe Gunn, representing Mayor Richard Riordan, City Council members Laura Chick, Rita Walters, Mike Hernandez, Mike Feuer and Jackie Goldberg, and representatives of numerous local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.