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McALLEN — Shocked.
That’s how he remembered feeling when hearing the news that McAllen police Officers Edelmiro Garza Jr. and Ismael Z. Chavez had been shot and killed in the line of duty while responding to a domestic disturbance call at a local residence.
Sgt. Gaston Balli of the McAllen Police Department’s community affairs unit was stunned after learning of his fallen brothers’ deaths on that dark day Saturday, July 11, 2020. It’s a numbing sensation that accompanies grief, and which he still feels four years later.
He and fellow McAllen police observed a radio silence for 38 seconds Thursday afternoon as it marked that solemn anniversary. For Balli, who was present at the ceremony at city hall, the memories remain so fresh that he appeared to still be carrying the weight of that day, a weight that’s too heavy to bear.
Police say Garza and Chavez were ambushed by 23-year-old Audon Ignacio Camarillo, who shot at them as they made their way to the home.
After firing at the officers, Camarillo then shot and killed himself.
At the McAllen dispatch Thursday, their fellow officers stood solemnly as the silence was deafening, all in memory of Garza and Chavez’s sacrifice that day.
“We honor all our fallen officers,” Balli said. “We’re here to remember them as long as we can, to support their families, to support their children and their relatives.”
While the anniversary serves as an opportunity to remember Garza and Chavez, he is constantly reminded of their service to the community.
Garza, who began his career in dispatch, worked closely with Balli’s department. He recalled seeing him in the hallways where Garza always greeted his coworkers, and had become a mainstay. Someone officers could count on seeing every day.
After hearing of Garza’s death, Balli could only express shock and the new reality that walking around the police department would never be the same again.
“What happened to them, that is something that no department wants to go through,” Balli said with a shaky voice. “You see it around the country, you see it around the state because we’ve traveled across the state and attended funerals, and when this happened it was just like you couldn’t believe it, like you wouldn’t think it would happen here the way it happened.”
Although he grieved together with the police department, Balli couldn’t imagine what the families were going through.
“Every time you see the families it’s heartbreaking,” Balli said, adding that as a way to give back to them he reassures that Garza and Chavez’s brothers in blue are always there for them.
“Whatever they need we’re there for them.”
Balli explained that he still speaks to Garza and Chavez’s family who sometimes reach out to him just to talk.
His voice softened as he spoke about Chavez’s father, whose grief over losing his son gave Balli a new perspective about his relationship with his own son.
“We’re never going to forget our officers,” Balli said.
