TREMONTON, Utah — From a mother and her son who brought something they baked for officers, to an older couple, a husband and wife, who drove to bring flowers from their yard, there was a steady stream of visitors looking to pay tribute to the Tremonton Garland Police Department on the day after they lost two of their own.
"I just came to show my respect for them," shared Kristina Peterson, who works with dispatch, and brought her children to department offices on Monday.
Peterson said the shooting will make an impact on the tight-knit Tremonton community.
"Everybody’s lives here will be changed," she said.
Kristina works closely with many of the men and women in the police department, and was understandably heartbroken.
"What happened, they did not deserve," Peterson said through tears. "They did not deserve this. They were just trying to do their jobs. They had families to go home to."
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Mourners, young and old, contributed to the growing tribute as city workers put up flags to line Main Street in honor of the fallen officers and their service. Blue ribbons were tied on the trees out front, and fellow officers filled the area with even more flags.
Members of the community said what occurred on Sunday hit this small town hard.
"I was one of those that was blessed to go home," explained retired Weber County Sheriff's Office Deputy Sheriff Ray Day.
Day retired from the sheriff's office 10 years ago.
"These are our brothers," Day said. "We all know the price when we go out and we get in these cars. We kiss these family goodbye, and we don’t know if it’s the last time we’re going to kiss these families goodbye."
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Making the drive from Thatcher, Day shared why it was important for him to come by and pay his respects.
"The officers in this city were close friends with their public," Day said. "Now, when you’re close friends with your public, they didn’t get out of there to go into get into a fight. They thought they were going to go talk to a citizen that was having a bad day. These brothers were doing their jobs, and they were doing it just the very best they could, and the very simple thing is the Lord called them home."
