SAN ANTONIO-The top leadership of Texas and law enforcement officials from across the nation joined family and friends of San Antonio police Detective Benjamin Marconi to pay tribute to the officer who was shot to death while sitting in his patrol car.
Marconi's funeral Monday was at the Community Bible Church in San Antonio and drew an estimated 3,000 mourners, in and out of uniform, to praise the detective. Betsy Buhler, the church's media minister and a police chaplain, said: "We are forever grateful for his watch over us."
The 50-year-old Marconi was fatally shot Nov. 20 as he sat in his patrol car writing a traffic ticket outside police headquarters. Thirty-one-year-old Otis Tyrone McKane has been charged with capital murder in the attack. McKane said he was angry over a child-custody battle and "lashed out at somebody who didn't deserve it."
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, a San Antonio Republican, were among the dignitaries who attended the service.
Those who spoke at the service included fellow officers and grown children of the slain 20-year department veteran.
"He made everyone around you feel lighter and safer. He relaxed people. He was the kind of person we should all strive to be like," said Jacy Marconi, one of the detective's grown children.
A 21-gun salute and a flyover by a San Antonio Police Department helicopter were highlights of the service.
