S.O. Police Officer Attended Slain Jersey City Detective's Funeral

South Orange Police Officer Adrian Acevedo was among the thousands of mourners at St. Aedan's Church in Jersey City on Friday morning who came to pay their respects to Detective Marc DiNardo, who died last week after being shot in the face in a July 16 shootout in Jersey City that left two suspects dead and four other police officers wounded.

While he's attended a number of police funerals before, the likeness between himself and DiNardo was striking to Acevedo, who has a 5-year-old, a 2-year-old, and a 7-month-old. DiNardo was also a father of three young children. "Any day I go to work, that could be me," said Acevedo, who participates annually in the Police Unity Tour, in which police officers bike to Washington, D.C., to honor the memory of slain cops.

Acevedo attended the service in uniform and was standing at attention before the service began and lined up in formation with thousands of officers—from states including Connecticut and Ohio—afterwards. Though he felt emotional when the bagpipers started to play, it was evident that the Jersey City police officers were having a more difficult time. "You could see their devastation," said Acevedo, who was recently elected president of the South Orange police union. "They were just walking around like zombies."

After the service, Acevedo was part of the procession to Holy Cross Cemetery in North Arlington, where DiNardo was laid to rest. He was overwhelmed by the turnout, from the thousands of officers who came from around the country to the people who stood on the streets around the church with signs of support. "I'm so humbled by the gravity of it," he said.