He was responding to a call about a man having heart trouble while playing basketball at an Aurora park, a call normally for paramedics.
Aurora police officer Doug Byrne was just that kind of a guy, his family and colleagues say. But he never made it to the scene. He was killed after rolling his police cruiser just blocks from the park.
Byrne, 37, was honored today on the one-year anniversary of his death at a ceremony at Aurora police headquarters.
He was a Marine who served in the Persian Gulf War, then came back to his home state of Colorado and became a police officer in Glendale for six years before working in Aurora.
The man Byrne was on his way to help, Sedrick Niblet, 26, also died. Niblet will be honored from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday at Hoops Park, 16300 E. Sixth Ave. The ceremony will include a musical tribute, a performance by a local step team, a presentation by the city of Aurora and a balloon release.
