Fallen Officer Memorial

On October 30th, 2007 the CCGIA completed a year long project in Compton, CA that culminated in the dedication and unveiling of a memorial monument for three Compton Police Officers killed in the line of duty.

History of the Compton Memorial Project

In late 2006 CCGIA Training Advisory Board member Sgt. Richard Duran, approached the Board of Directors regarding the condition of a damaged memorial plaque in Compton, CA. Duran had been out taking photos for a PowerPoint presentation for fallen California peace officers, when he found the 10"x12" plaque damaged. The plaque was set in the sidewalk at the location where Compton Police Officers Kevin Burrel and James MacDonald were killed February 22nd, 1993. The plaque had since been vandalized and damaged.

Duran proposed a project in which CCGIA would have the plaque replaced and moved to a more secure location, thereby preserving the plaque in a suitable fashion. The Board of Directors agreed that the memory of these fallen officers was not being preserved appropriately, and took on the project, with Duran as the coordinator.

During the research for the project, it was also found that a third Compton PD officer, Des Phipps, had been killed in the line of duty on October 12, 1962, but there was no memorial plaque for him.

A new memorial plaque and monument were designed and a location next to the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, Compton Station, was selected as the monument site. CCGIA flew family members of all three fallen officers' families to Southern California for the unveiling of the new monument, from as far away as Utah and Texas.

The "Full Honors" memorial ceremony included:

• Full motorcade for family members
• Color Guard
• Speeches by Compton Mayor Perrodin, LASD Assistant Sheriff Tanaka, and Master of Ceremonies Chris Blatchford
• Riderless horse
• Flyover by LASD Air Support Bureau

The pinnacle of the ceremony was when the mother of Officer MacDonald, the Son of Kevin Burrell and the daughter of Officer Phipps removed the ceremonial covering of the new monument, adorned with three white roses.

When asked by the president of the Association of Los Angeles Deputy Sheriff's why a gang association from the central coast had taken on this project, the board of directors replied "When it comes to doing the right thing, there are no jurisdictional or regional boundaries."