A public celebration of life was held in Fargo this (Wed) afternoon, in memory of Jake Wallin, the 23-year-old Fargo Police officer who was shot and killed in the line of duty on July 14th.
The two-hour event at Scheels Arena attracted law enforcement from throughout the region and included comments from several dignitaries, such as North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, who said the gathering not only serves to pay respect to hero Officer Wallin, but to offer gratitude as a community and state.
“There’s only two groups of people in this room today,” Burgum said. “There’s a lot in the first group – those that have sworn an oath to serve and protect. The other group? All the rest of us — the rest of us who are those fortunate citizens who can benefit from their courage and their commitment to fulfilling that duty.”
Burgum added: “Evil is hard to understand, hard for some of us to comprehend, and we may never fully understand the ‘why’ behind this shocking and senseless act of violence, but we do know with certainty that the bullets taken by officer Wallin, officer Andrew Dotas and officer Tyler Hawes and citizen Karlee Koswick, they were intended for something of much greater evil.”
The ceremony also featured recorded comments from Dotas and Hawes, as well as Officer Zach Robinson, who shot and killed the gunman, Mohamed Barakat.
Police Chief Dave Zibolski recalled Wallin as a person of “impeccable character” who had a “strong moral compass.”
Wallin’s father Jeff addressed the mourners, saying his son would not have had any regrets about his career choice — or how it ended. He called his son “a hero.”
Jeff Wallin urged children to follow their dreams and urged parents to support their children, even if the child’s dreams differ from theirs.
Other speakers included North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley, former U-S Senator Heidi Heitkamp and Fargo Mayor Tim Mahoney.
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(Photo: Fargo PD)