Home › News › Local
Rio Rancho remembers the cop who died a hero
Photo by Steven St. JohnTribune
Tribune
Rio Rancho police Officer Germaine Casey's widow Lisa Casey wipes away a tear during funeral services on Friday morning at the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho. Casey, 40, died in the line of duty Monday while protecting the president's motorcade on Tuesday. To her left are their children, Melissa and Mitchell Casey
RELATED STORIES
More Local
- ABQTrib.com to remain available
- Former Marine to serve two years in jail for killing Albuquerque robber
- Wilson-Pearce battle for U.S. Senate exemplifies party's disparity
MOST RECENT TRIB STORIES
-
ABQTrib.com to remain available
08:48 a.m., February 25, 2008 -
Congressman is indicted
08:37 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Series of attacks target Green Zone
08:36 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Iran is defying U.N., agency says
08:35 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Waterboarding approval probed
08:34 a.m., February 23, 2008
TRIB IN THE BLOGOSPHERE*
- Ty Murray Invitational thrills fans in Albuquerque
- Is Rome Burning?
- Ominous Skies
- The Road to Invalidation
- Albuquerque company participates in “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”
*Note: The Tribune does not create and is not responsible for the blogosphere's headlines and stories. These links to blogs talking about ABQTrib.com are automatically generated. Use them at your own risk.
STORY TOOLS
SHARE THIS STORY [?]
When asked by a friend what attracted her to her husband, Lisa Casey immediately said it was his ability to reach out to others.
It was a common sentiment Friday, when more than 700 people gathered at the Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho to honor Germaine Casey, a man who touched their lives both as a police officer and a friend.
"I came to represent a fallen officer," said Greg Quintana, deputy director of the Sandoval County Detention Center. "We all stand together as one."
Rio Rancho police Officer Germaine Casey died Monday after his motorcycle crashed while part of a motorcade escorting President Bush to Albuquerque International Sunport.
The president sent the head of his Secret Service, Mark Sullivan, and his homeland security adviser, Fran Townsend, to the services.
Quintana's sentiments were reflected as a sea of brown, black and different shades of blue worn by New Mexico law enforcement officers filled the seats of the Rio Rancho arena.
The song "Just the Two of Us" by Bill Withers played while a group of police officers carried the casket draped in an American flag.
A slide show of Casey's life, family, baseball career and law-enforcement career played in the background.
Casey was born in Chicago in 1967. In 1985, he played minor league baseball in the Atlanta Braves organization. He and his wife, Lisa, came to Albuquerque in 2002 and he became an officer with the University of New Mexico Police Department. In 2005, he joined the Rio Rancho police.
Rio Rancho Mayor Michael Williams, a retired Bernalillo County Deputy, used a quote from William Shakespeare's "Henry V" to express his sentiments for the fallen officer.
"For he today that sheds blood with me shall be my brother," he said.
Tears began to pour from his eyes as he spoke about Casey's impact on the police force and Rio Rancho.
"Our brother is gone, but he will not be forgotten," he said.
Speakers extended their sympathies to Casey's wife, Lisa; daughter, Melissa, 17, and son, Mitchell, 14.
"Here I am, alone and scared, wondering when, hoping when, the day you will return," Melissa Casey said, reading from a poem.
Casey's devotion to his family, baseball, friends and co-workers was a sentiment reflected by many speakers at the ceremony.
But it was Casey's compassion for others that many of his friends remember.
Nick Onken, a Rio Rancho police officer who also worked with Casey in the University of New Mexico Police Department, said Casey's selflessness is what makes him so heroic.
"Germaine came to work (Monday) on his day off to be with his friends and help them complete a vital assignment," he said. "He kept us all safe. For all of that and so much more, he was a hero."
