Slain Palm Springs Police Officers Memorialized at State Capitol, Chief Decries Realignment Legislation

PALM SPRINGS, CA - The names of fallen Palm Springs police officers Jose "Gil" Vega and Lesley Zerebny were added Monday to the state's peace officer memorial monument during a ceremony at the state Capitol. Vega and Zerebny were among 13 other officers memorialized during the 41st annual California Peace Officers' Memorial Ceremony in Sacramento.

The California Peace Officers' Memorial Monument, which is on the Capitol grounds, includes the names of more than 1,500 fallen police officers who have been killed in the line of duty.

Along with Vega and Zerebny, eight other officers who were killed in the line of duty last year were memorialized, as were five who died in previous years.

Palm Springs police Chief Bryan Reyes was the keynote speaker at the ceremony, which also included a memorial procession of law enforcement vehicles and a "Walk of Honor" for the families of fallen officers.

During an impassioned speech, Reyes decried state legislation that he believes put officers' lives at risk.

Though he did not specifically name Proposition 47 or Assembly Bill 109, which redefined punishments for non-violent offenders in a bid to reduce prison overcrowding, Reyes said the officers' deaths put into focus the "Assembly bills and propositions responsible for the watering down of our justice system" -- a comment that drew sustained applause from the crowd.

"The further that society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those that speak it. If I am hated, it just shows how much we have drifted," Reyes said.

He praised the family members of officers for their support of their loved ones.

"Know they went to work that fatal day loving what they do because of the support of you," he told family members attending the ceremony. "Know that there's always someone within our law enforcement profession to lean on during your time in need."

Vega, 63, and Zerebny, 27, were killed last Oct. 8 after responding to a family disturbance call. John Hernandez Felix, 26, allegedly fired on the officers through the metal screen door of his home, striking Vega, Zerebny, and a third officer who survived his injuries.

Their deaths marked the first time a Palm Springs police officer had been killed in the line of duty since Jan. 1, 1962, when Officer Lyle Wayne Larrabee died during a vehicle pursuit. The only other death in the department was that of Officer Gale Gene Eldridge, who was fatally shot on Jan. 18, 1961, while investigating an armed robbery.

Vega had been with the department for 35 years -- five years past his retirement eligibility -- and had planned to finish his career last December. Zerebny had been with the department for about 18 months and had just returned to duty from maternity leave after the birth of a daughter.

– By City News Service / Images credit: PSPD