Local officials and community members came together Tuesday night to honor the four law enforcement officers who were killed when
gunfire erupted at a house in North Carolina, where authorities were trying to serve a warrant.
Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles stood at the pulpit of Little Rock A.M.E. Zion Church addressing a room of about 50 gathered for a prayer vigil the day after four law enforcement officers, including three on a U.S. Marshals Task Force, were killed and four other officers were injured in a shootout at a suburban home in east Charlotte. The suspect who fired at officers was fatally shot on the lawn of the house, while two other people inside the home were later taken in for questioning.
"I have to say I make no apologies for my tears," Lyles said during Tuesday's vigil. "What makes me whole is to be a genuine leader in this community, who’s not afraid to show vulnerability when it’s necessary and needed."
Lyles thanked the law enforcement officers who stood outside the hospital in the aftermath of the shooting, the medical professionals who helped the injured, and the clergy that "guided the families through the kinds of turmoil and disbelief that all was taking place at the same time."
The mayor said the most difficult experience was when Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Officer Joshua Eyer died from his injuries, noting that he was married and had a 3-year-old son.
"Our challenge to this community is take make sure that 3-year-old son grows up knowing his dad," Lyles said. "His dad was a law enforcement officer, he was a hero, he was someone that we should be proud to know and speak of."
