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ROOSEVELT — As the final words were spoken over the grave, the heavens opened up and a driving rain began to fall from a sky that had been the brightest blue just moments earlier.
An emotionally devastated group of police officers huddled nearby and held on to one another as the American flag flying at half staff nearby was buffeted by the gale.
On Saturday, more than 10 years after the funeral for slain Roosevelt Police Chief Cecil Gurr, many of those same officers reunited for the dedication of a permanent memorial near the spot where he was killed. They were joined by members of Gurr's family, including his widow and two sons, and many of the volunteers who made the memorial possible.
"There's some people that stand out above others and he was one of them," retired Roosevelt Police Sgt. Wayne Embleton said, recalling Gurr's integrity and graciousness.
"He would take people and help them, even after arresting them," Embleton said.
Gurr was off-duty on July 6, 2001, and was running to the grocery store when he heard dispatchers send one of his officers to a domestic violence call at a nearby convenience store. True to form, the chief went to back the officer up and found Lee Roy Wood pointing an assault rifle at the officer.
"Chief yelled at the guy and was rushing him, to take the attention off of (the officer)," Embleton said. "The man swung and killed Chief."
Gurr, 50, was shot in the head. He died instantly.
Wood pleaded guilty to capital murder after prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty. He is serving life in prison without the possibility of parole.
A makeshift memorial sprung up shortly after Gurr's death, across the street from the convenience store. Kathy Chapman, who has two sons and a daughter-in-law working in law enforcement, said it never seemed right that there wasn't a more permanent memorial in Roosevelt to one of the community's heroes.
"It's always made me a little sad that we didn't have something better to honor him," Chapman said.
So Chapman and her son, Roosevelt Police Sgt. Jeremy Chapman, decided to rally a group of volunteers to build a proper memorial.
"I had a lot of people come and help me, a lot of the community," Kathy Chapman said. "Their equipment. Their services. Everything. They were just so please to be part of this project."
Saturday's dedication included an American Legion color guard and the playing of taps by two Roosevelt police officers. Gurr's sons, Slade and Dax, also addressed those who gathered to pay their respects.
"It's very breathtaking to see the community and the people that we grew up with remembering the life of service my father lived," Slade Gurr told the Deseret News following the dedication.
Gurr became a police officer himself after his father's death. He works as a detective with the Logan Police Department. His father is never far from this thoughts, he said.
"I miss my dad every day," Gurr said. "I think about him every time I have some kind of case that reminds me of him."
Email:gliesik@desnews.com
