LOS ANGELES — A proposal to name a Reseda park after the first Los Angeles Police Department SWAT officer to die in the line of duty was approved Wednesday by a City Council committee.

Officer Randy Simmons died Feb. 7 during a standoff with a young man who killed his father and two brothers inside a Winnetka home. The 20-year-old was shot and killed by officers.

The Arts, Parks, Health and Aging Committee approved the recommendation to rename West Valley Park after Simmons and sent the proposal to the full council for approval.

Councilman Dennis Zine, an LAPD reserve officer, introduced the motion.

“Officer Simmons always loved children, he was a SWAT officer with a huge heart, and it is appropriate that a children’s play area in West Valley Park was just named in his honor,” Zine’s motion says.

“The selfless devotion to community which Officer Simmons maintained for many years is deserving of even greater recognition. It is appropriate that in addition to the children’s play area, the entire West Valley Park be also named in his memory.”

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Vote-Passed-for-Renaming-Park-After-Slain-SWAT-Officer.html

A park’s play area is named for the LAPD officer who was shot to death during a February raid in the area. It is hoped to rename the entire park after him.

By Jean-Paul Renaud, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
1:39 PM PDT, July 26, 2008

Several hundred police police officers, San Fernando Valley residents and dignitaries gathered this morning at West Valley Park in Reseda to rename the children’s play area in honor slain SWAT Officer Randal D. Simmons, who was killed in the line of duty and has been hailed as hero for his police work and community service.

Councilman Dennis Zine, who unveiled a plaque as the fallen officer’s wife and children looked on, is behind a movement to rename the entire park in honor of Simmons, who was shot to death during a SWAT raid in February at a Winnetka house.

“He loved kids, he always loved children, he was a SWAT guy with a huge heart,” Zine said. “This was a perfect connection.”

The plaque describes Simmons as a “leading light to his friends and family. He will be sorely missed by all.”

Besides his police work, Simmons volunteered on the streets of inner-city neighborhoods where he ministered to children on weekends as part of a church group he founded called Glory Kids Ministries, which steers children away from gangs and toward Christianity.

“It was just a way to show continuing respect for Randy and his unique part in helping kids,” Zine said. “That’s why the park was a perfect location.”

Zine said he will introduce a motion Tuesday at the Los Angeles City Council to rename the park.

jp.renaud@latimes.com

Watch the video by clicking the link below

abc7 News Video

Los Angeles, July 16 2008 - Memorial billboards posted in honor of LAPD Officer Randal Simmons will be installed this week around Southern California.

The 20 billboards for the slain officer thank the community for their many expressions of caring and support. “Our family wanted to find a visible way to express our sincere appreciation for the outpouring of love, support and prayers that we have received from everyone around the world. The cards, flowers and words of condolences are too numerous to count,” said Lisa Simmons, wife of Randal Simmons

The first billboard went up today in Los Angeles at Florence Avenue, just west of 5^th Avenue, on Clear Channel Outdoor location #2533.

“Partnering with the Los Angeles Police Protective League, we wanted to recognize Officer Simmons’ service to Los Angeles and to the nation with these billboards,” said Layne Lawson, Public Affairs Director for Clear Channel Outdoor. The posting of the billboards was donated by Clear Channel Outdoor.

Officer Simmons was shot and killed as he and other members of the Los Angeles SWAT Team made entry into a home on February 7, 2008. The team had been deployed to the home after a suspect inside called 911 and claimed to have murdered three family members. As the team entered, the suspect opened fire, striking Officer Simmons and a second officer. The suspect was later shot and killed by another member of the SWAT team as the standoff continued.

Officer Simmons had served with the Los Angeles Police Department for 27 years. He is survived by his wife Lisa, two children, parents, and two sisters.

By Dennis McCarthy, Columnist

Article Last Updated: 04/09/2008 11:24:43 PM PDT

Los Angeles’ big three sat under an arch of decorative balloons at Reseda High School on Wednesday morning reading numbers they couldn’t quite believe.

Had to be some kind of mistake, the mayor, police chief and school superintendent agreed. Nobody gets these kinds of numbers today.

A 100 percent graduation rate, with 97 percent of the 168 students standing in front of them headed for college.

Forget it. Can’t be done. Not in public schools where the dropout rate continues to rise.

Well, it is being done, and for the third year in a row at the Reseda High Police Academy Magnet.

“This is one of those programs you want to model and put in a bottle,” LAUSD Superintendent David Brewer III said as a dozen proud mothers stood off to the side, beaming at their children.

Their husbands would have been there, too, they said. But they had to work.

“Nothing in life is ever 100 percent, but you guys are 100 percent,” said LAPD Chief William Bratton. “You are this city’s success story.”

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa walked through rows of students, shaking their hands and calling them an inspiration.

“This city is proud of you,” the mayor said, wishing Roberta Weintraub - former LAUSD school board president, who was ill Wednesday - could be there to see what her idea of nurturing home-grown, future LAPD officers in magnet schools had produced.

A 100 percent high school graduation rate of boys and girls who think hard work, discipline and respect are something to strive for, not avoid.”My mother wanted to be a police officer when she was young, but she couldn’t,” said 17-year-old cadet Nicole Jovel. “She became a nurse instead. I’m going to be a police officer, an LAPD detective some day.”

None of these kids was pushed into this program. It wasn’t their parents’ or teachers’ idea, they say. It’s something they’ve wanted since they were students together at Mulholland Middle School - Reseda High’s feeder school, which has a police magnet program.

They say they’re proud being the kids on campus wearing a cadet uniform one day a week for drills, proud of having their own special academic and physical exercise curriculum to prepare them for a career in law enforcement, which about 75 percent of them achieve.

Sure, some of the other kids on campus give them a little lip sometimes when they walk by, but not many.

“Some kids are disrespectful, but the majority are respectful,” Nicole said. “All of us have friends who wish they had joined with us when they were younger, but now they’re too old as juniors and seniors.”

There are police academy magnet programs at five high schools in Los Angeles, including Monroe High in North Hills. More than half the students are girls.

“Girl power,” said Lisa Simmons, widow of LAPD SWAT Officer Randal Simmons, who was shot and killed in February during a standoff in Winnetka.

She made a special trip to the school to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the program and to meet these kids who wanted to follow in her husband’s footsteps in this city.

“Randy was the best of the best, and we expect you to be the best of the best,” she said to heavy applause. “Go out into our community and make us proud.”

That’s exactly what they plan to do, the kids say - when they get old enough. All of the graduating seniors are still too young to become police officers.

“You have to be at least 20<MD+,%30,%55,%70>1/<MD-,%0,%55,%70>2 to join the department, and most of us are only 17,” said Hector Lobos, a cadet sergeant. “I’m going to CSUN, and after I graduate I plan on becoming an LAPD officer.”

L.A.’s big three smiled. The numbers didn’t lie. Some things in life are 100 percent.

Dennis McCarthy’s column appears Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday. dennis.mccarthy@dailynews.com, 818-713-3749

Today, the staff of LAPD’s Southwest Division, presented Capt. James Craig, Commanding Officer, Southwest Area. (best man at Randy Simmons wedding) a special plaque honoring the memory of Randy Simmons and their friendship.

LAPD Centurions Retire #17 Randy Simmons Jersey - Click to view video

The LAPD Centurion Football Team Dedicates the 2008 Season, Our 30th Year of “playing football for kids”,to Fallen Alumni Officer III+I Randal Simmons:

As the LAPD Centurions prepare for their 30 th season of playing football for kids they morn the recent death of Centurion Alumni, Police Officer III+I Randal Simmons. Officer Simmons played for the Centurions for over 10 years in the 1980s and early 1990s. The Centurions are dedicating the 2008 season to Officer Simmons. The team will be wearing his number, “17”, on their helmets and striving to win the Championship title in his name.

SWAT Officers Running in memory of Randy Simmons

A group of about 30 SWAT officers from the Los Angeles Police Department were running as part of a memorial dedicated to Officer Randal Simmons, who died in the line of duty last month.

Some of the officers ran the race as a relay, carrying a torch that was handed off every three miles until it was finally passed to Simmons’ teenage son, Matthew, who carried the flame from mile 25 to the finish line.

“It was an honor and a privilege to run for my father,” Matthew said. “I’m sure he’s looking down and is pleased.”

View Video coverage

SWAT team passes the torch for fallen comrade

By Jill Painter Staff Writer _ Los Angeles Protective League

With about 30 LAPD SWAT members around him, Matt Simmons took a torch and ran the final mile of the Los Angeles Marathon.

Matt is a sprinter, not a distance runner, but he was pushed through the streets of downtown by cheers, inspirational messages like “keep your head up” and well wishes.

He ran the final leg of a relay celebrating his dad’s life with 30 men he calls uncles.

Matt is the 15-year-old son of LAPD officer Randal Simmons, who was shot and killed by a gunman in Winnetka last month.

Simmons’ colleagues honored him by lighting the torch at the start of the marathon and passing it between the hands of 30 members of the SWAT team, culminating with Matt.

“It meant a lot to honor him,” Matt said. “It was a privilege. I’m sure my father would’ve been very happy.”

Randall, 51, once did the L.A. Marathon by pushing a quadriplegic in a wheelchair all 26.2 miles. He didn’t like to run much, Matt said, but he did it to stay healthy.

Matt, a sophomore at Bishop Montgomery High in Torrance, spent the morning at a football combine at the HomeDepot Center before he anchored the marathon relay.

Randal’s wife, Lisa, and daughter, Gabrielle, were at the finish line. Afterward, Gabrielle held a framed shadow box with a picture of Simmons and a medal for completing the marathon.

“I know a lot of people cared,” Gabrielle said.

Members of the Simmons family, friends and relay runners wore white T-shirts which had a picture of him on the back.

Every mile, a new officer took the torch to honor Simmons. Simmons’ mother, Constance, called her son her “Gentle Giant,” a nickname she gave him after his death. His wife said he’s become an icon. To others, he was friend, mentor and LAPD partner.

SWAT team officer James Hart lit the torch and started the race in front of photographers at the start line. He was awed by the reception from people lining the streets and honking their horns.

“It was very emotional,” Hart said. “When we made our way downtown, the accolades were overwhelming. We appreciate the citizens and good people of this city.”

SWAT officer James Veenstra, who was shot in the jaw by the same gunman that killed Simmons, thanked everyone for cards, encouragement and prayers.

His wife, LAPD captain Michelle Veenstra, stood by his side as he made a statement.

“The healing process couldn’t happen without it,” Veenstra said. “I’ll try to send out thank yous, but I’ll probably miss some folks. To those who bolstered us up in a hard time, we appreciate it, and we’re indebted to them.”

The LAPD Centurion Football Team Dedicates the 2008 Season, Our 30th Year of “playing football for kids”,to Fallen Alumni Officer III+I Randal Simmons:

As the LAPD Centurions prepare for their 30 th season of playing football for kids they morn the recent death of Centurion Alumni, Police Officer III+I Randal Simmons. Officer Simmons played for the Centurions for over 10 years in the 1980s and early 1990s. The Centurions are dedicating the 2008 season to Officer Simmons. The team will be wearing his number, “17”, on their helmets and striving to win the Championship title in his name.

On February 23, 2008, at 2:00 PM, in Colton, California the Centurions went up against the Inland Empire Enforcers. The Enforcers donated $2500 to the Simmon’s family from the proceeds of the game. Please join us at the Centurions’ first home game on March 8, 2008, where the proceeds will also be donated to the Simmon’s family. There will be a special half-time to honor Randy and his family with a ceremony to retire his jersey.

LAPD Centurion Website

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–March 1, 2001

On your mark, get set, go! Those are the words that echo through the ears of thousands of runners who complete the Los Angeles Marathon annually. To them, feeling the thrill of competition and the exhilaration of running across the finish line is unparalleled. Johnny Garcia, age 15, thought he would never know the feeling of running across a finish line, because he was born with cerebral palsy, a disorder that affects muscle control, resulting in poor coordination and balance or abnormal movement patterns.

After 18 surgeries at Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital on Johnny’s feet, legs, back, and ankle, he is able to walk with a walker and take part in activities previously thought impossible. Now, on March 4th, Johnny will be able to pursue his dream of participating in the Los Angeles Marathon, with the help of his friends on the LAPD SWAT Team, who will push him in a wheelchair during the race.

“I’m excited to be able to participate in the Marathon,” exclaimed Johnny Garcia. “And with LAPD SWAT Team helping me, it’s really unbelievable. I like those guys and maybe someday I can be on the SWAT Team,” he said. Johnny’s mother, Carmen Garcia, added, “Orthopaedic Hospital and the therapy department have been very good to Johnny. Everyone at the Hospital really cares about the patients.”

Twenty-six SWAT Team officers will take turns pushing Johnny in a special lightweight, sports wheelchair as they run 26.2 miles in the world’s fourth largest marathon. This experience allows youngsters, like Johnny, to participate in an event of such magnitude.

“We are truly grateful to the LAPD SWAT Team for being such strong supporters of Orthopaedic Hospital, and for giving Johnny this once in a lifetime opportunity to complete the LA Marathon,” said Eloise Helwig, President of Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital Foundation. “SWAT’s ongoing support of the Hospital is greatly appreciated, and it truly brightens the lives of our children who get to meet these real life heroes,” she added.

Many Orthopaedic Hospital pediatric and adult patients have serious medical conditions that prohibit them from running or walking. Orthopaedic Hospital has been dedicated to treating underinsured children with crippling disorders, without regard to their family’s ability to pay. For many years, LAPD SWAT has been supportive of Orthopaedic Hospital’s efforts and gives hope and inspiration to hospitalized children. A variety of events, including an annual Holiday parade and toy drive, as well as the Los Angeles Marathon, have further strengthened the bond between the two organizations.

“Helping Johnny achieve his wish of completing a marathon is something that motivates all of us, and provides us with a perspective on life,” said Lt. Mike Albanese of the LAPD SWAT Team. “It’s the children who are treated at Orthopaedic Hospital who are our real heroes,” he added.

Since 1967, the Los Angeles Police Department’s Special Weapons And Tactics Team (SWAT) has provided a ready response to situations that were beyond the capabilities of normally equipped and trained Department personnel. Since its inception, LAPD SWAT Team members have effected the safe rescue of numerous hostages, arrested scores of violent suspects and earned hundreds of commendations and citations, including several Medals of Valor, the Department’s highest award for heroism in the line of duty. Today, the LAPD SWAT Team is known worldwide as one of the foremost police tactical units in contemporary law enforcement.

Located in the heart of Los Angeles, Orthopaedic Hospital is a recognized world leader in research, teaching and patient care in orthopaedic medicine, resulting in an improved quality of life for children and adults with crippling diseases. For over 88 years, Orthopaedic Hospital has been helping children afflicted with crippling conditions receive the finest care in the world and lead healthy, active lives without regard to the family’s ability to pay. The Orthopaedic Hospital Foundation supports the Hospital through a variety of fund-raising activities, including the annual Paul Runyan Golf Tournament, which provides monetary support for the Hospital to help countless children. For more information about Orthopaedic Hospital Foundation, please visit the website at www.orthohospital.org, or call (213) 742-1500.

Wounded LAPD officer thanks public for support

The Associated Press

Article Launched: 03/02/2008 01:47:26 PM PST

LOS ANGELES—A police officer who was wounded last month in a San Fernando Valley shootout that killed his colleague is offering thanks for the support he and his family have received.James Veenstra spoke Sunday after about 30 officers ran a torch relay in the Los Angeles Marathon in memory of Randal Simmons, the city’s first SWAT officer slain in the line of duty.

Veenstra is recovering after being shot in the jaw. He and the officers wore shirts with a picture of Simmons that read “Pass the Torch.”

Veenstra says he’s grateful for the outpouring of sympathy he received after being injured in the line of duty.

The 51-year-old says “The healing process wouldn’t have begun without it.”

Outpouring of respect, donations continues for Simmons, his family
Slain SWAT officer prized as Fairfax grad

Angelenos on Saturday honored slain Los Angeles Police Department Officer Randal Simmons, with high schoolers from his alma mater dedicating a baseball season to him while others washed cars to raise money for his family.Fairfax High School’s baseball team dedicated its 2008 season to the officer in a midmorning ceremony. Simmons, a SWAT team member who was killed during a shootout with an armed man in Winnetka last month, graduated from the school in 1974.

With a smile, Lisa Simmons accepted a glass plaque in her late husband’s honor, telling the assembled baseball players, fans and families about his fondness for the campus.

“This was my husband’s school. He loved Fairfax,” she said, clutching the plaque. “I know he’s looking down, smiling.”

The widow of the former cop, who doubled as a minister, said her husband would have told the kids to stay in school and stay off drugs.

“God wants you to have a good life,” she said. “That’s what you were designed for.”

She grinned and called out the school’s pregame battle cry: “Fairfax, you ready?”

The players responded: “You know!”

As they left the field to the sound of applause, Simmons’ 15-year-old son, Matthew, said his father had come back to visit Fairfax High School about a year ago.

“He said it’s beautiful now,” Matthew Simmons said. “He would be happy.”

At Reseda High School, about 80 kids in the Police Academy Magnet program braved
the cool, cloudy weather and hosed down hundreds of cars, collecting money that would go to help the family Simmons left behind.The magnet program puts students on track for careers in law enforcement. Several of the kids who were there washing and vacuuming cars - for $5 to $7 a pop - had attended Simmons’ funeral.

“I cried. It was a very gloomy day,” said Amanda Lillard, a 17-year-old senior. “When you hear that - someone risking their life to save another - you want to go. … His legacy will live on forever. He’s a hero.”

Simmons and his partner, Officer James Veenstra, were shot Feb. 7 during a gunbattle that ended an 11-hour standoff. It began after 20-year-old Edwin Garcia killed three family members and told police to “come get me.”

Simmons was the first LAPD Special Weapons and Tactics officer killed in the line of duty. Veenstra was seriously wounded but was released from the hospital to attend his partner’s funeral.

An LAPD sniper killed Garcia as he fled from his family’s house, which caught fire after police fired flash-bang grenades inside to smoke him out.

On Saturday, several other groups also put on fundraising events to benefit the officers. The San Fernando Valley Jaycees held a pizza benefit at California Pizza Kitchen.

Niko’s Pizzeria in San Pedro said it would donate 50 percent of the restaurant’s Saturday sales proceeds to Simmons’ widow and two children. Two weeks ago, owners of a Burger King near downtown Los Angeles raised $75,000 for the family.

And today, 30 LAPD officers will run in the Los Angeles Marathon in honor of Simmons.

“It’s comforting, having all the outpouring of love,” Lisa Simmons said. “We can’t mourn his death. We have to celebrate his 51 years of life.”

Community Holds Fundraisers For Slain SWAT Officer
Thomas Watkins
Associated Press

February 23, 2008, 11:04 AM PST

A barbecue benefiting the family of slain Los Angeles Police Department Officer Randy Simmons will be held today from 11 a.m. through 4 p.m. at El Sereno Park, 4721 Klamath St.

Simmons, 51, was shot and killed Feb. 7 in a gun battle with a man who killed his father and two brothers inside a Winnetka home before killing himself. More than 10,000 people attended his funeral Feb. 15, the most for an LAPD funeral.

When the new SWAT headquarters opens later this year, it should be named for Simmons, the first SWAT officer to die in the line of duty, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said yesterday.

In a letter to the Police Commission, Villaraigosa said “it would be a fitting tribute to the life of Officer Simmons to rename the new home of the Metropolitan Division and SWAT team after this remarkable SWAT team officer and dedicated member of the community.”

The Metropolitan Division and SWAT are expected to move into the old Rampart Division station at 2710 W. Temple St. within the next six months.

Copyright © 2008, The Associated Press

Inscribed with honor: Officer Simmons
The slain LAPD lawman acted out of a sense of duty beyond his badge — a duty to be of service to the people around him
February 18, 2008
In the volatile world of the street, cops haven’t always been the good guys.
They’ve been known to apply brute force as a form of justice in the shadowy confines of downtown alleys and to quell peaceful protests with swinging truncheons.

We’ve seen them get away with videotaped crimes against civilians, and we’ve seen their militaristic units turn into undisciplined mobs.

Instances of racism and sadism once stained cops’ badges, making a mockery of a call to respect and support them when their brothers were killing black people in the South and challenging the right of peaceful assembly in the North.

But things have changed.

It doesn’t take a cultural anthropologist to see new attitudes emerging in the police departments of Southern California, including L.A.

Racial and ethnic diversity is obvious in their ranks and grievous errors of conduct are rarely excused.

Do moments of brutality still emerge among the men and women committed to protect and serve? Of course.

Even the best of training doesn’t always mute the instincts of those who don’t deserve to wear the blue uniform in the first place.

But for every bad cop who punches out a guy on the ground or shoots before he thinks, there’s always a man like Randal Simmons.

He has come to symbolize what cops are all about.

Simmons was the 51-year-old SWAT team veteran whose unit, because they thought that lives were imperiled inside a house under siege, joined fellow officers in raiding the building.

Simmons was shot dead by a mentally disturbed man who had already killed his father and two brothers on that violent day in Winnetka, who was then himself brought down by a police sniper.

Much has been made of the fact that Simmons was the first officer killed in action in the 40-year history of the nationally respected LAPD SWAT team.

The term “hero” has been applied many times in respect to his devotion to a duty that ended his life.

Some say that he deliberately jumped in front of a wounded partner to prevent the man from being shot a second time. The partner, James Veenstra, survived a bullet in the face.

Simmons is a hero either way. And if a more thorough investigation proves that he sacrificed his own life to save another, then the obvious protocol for a higher heroism applies.

But there’s a more subtle application to the term too. A policeman knows that every time he enters a house under siege, his life is at risk — but he does it anyhow.

We can assume that he does it because of his training, because of his sworn oath or because he’s just one of those guys who gets off on danger. But I think there’s another level to the ultimate risk: He does it because it’s part of a deeper instinct to save someone. That was Randal Simmons.

He was more than the sum of his duties. Simmons’ life beyond the badge and gun was dedicated to the service of others. He loved children, and bought the poor kids of South-Central L.A. presents on his own birthday. He co-hosted a Special Olympics and, as a minister for Carson’s Glory Christian Fellowship International church, drove his “glory van” to troubled housing projects, doing what he could to help the young.

There is a kind of heroism in a life like that, an assertion of goodness without trumpets. Simmons did what he did not because of the recognition he received, but because it was the right thing to do. His chief knew that. His colleagues knew that. His friends knew that. His neighbors knew that. And his family knew that. He leaves a wife of 20 years and two teenage children to mourn his death and celebrate his life.

I write of him today because there is a need to consider the qualities possessed by those we rely on but rarely know. Simmons represented the best of the men and women who patrol the streets and who respond to cries for help with a commitment beyond the requirements of the uniform. There remains in the human spirit an infrequently displayed inclination to rise above survival and risk everything for the sake of another.

In the landscape of our dreams, we all wish for heroes who are both brave under fire and kind to little children. If there aren’t enough of those who compare to Randal Simmons, at least there was him, and perhaps a few others.

They were the ones of whom the poet Stephen Spender wrote:

Born of the sun, they traveled a short while toward the sun, and left the vivid air inscribed with their honor.

So doing, Randal Simmons, by his life and by his deeds, ennobled us all.

Play taps.

almtz13@aol.com

Game of honor
Contest benefits slain officer’s family
Lauren McSherry, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 02/23/2008 09:18:06 PM PST

COLTON - The Inland Empire Enforcers charged onto the Colton High School football field on Saturday, ready to trounce the visiting Los Angeles Police Department Centurions.But they quickly fell behind.

By the end of the first quarter, the Enforcers were down by two touchdowns.
That might have been because something was compelling the Centurions to play harder than usual.

Saturday was the first game for the Centurions since losing one of their own - SWAT Officer Randal Simmons, who played defensive back and wore No. 17.

Simmons was shot to death Feb. 7 when a police standoff in Winnetka escalated to a gunbattle that ended with the deaths of five people.

Simmons was the first LAPD SWAT officer killed in the line of duty.

In honor of Simmons, the LAPD Centurions emblazoned his number on their helmets. They also said they would donate the proceeds from this game and their next one to the family of the slain officer and the causes he volunteered for in his spare time.

They want to claim the 2008 National Public Safety Football Championship in honor of their fallen hero.A moment of silence was held for Simmons before kickoff.

“We finally had an opportunity to get together as a group and to go out and show the heart and spirit we have, which is indicative of the type of heart and spirit Officer Simmons had,” said Centurions coach Donald Payne, an LAPD detective.

Jack Cota, a directorfor the Los Angeles Protective League, said the game was only the first in a series of fundraisers planned in honor of Simmons, who mentored hundreds of inner city youths.

“He spent a lot of time as a cop,” Cota said, “but he spent as much time with his church, with his family, with these kids in L.A.”

Beaumont police Cpl. John Combado, who usually plays fullback for the Enforcers, cheered from the stands with his wife, Michelle.

The money raised at Enforcers games usually goes to the Special Olympics, but this game was different.

“It’s the right thing to do,” Combado said.

The Enforcers team draws from a number of San Bernardino County law-enforcement agencies, including the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department as well as the Redlands, Chino and Colton police departments.

In the fourth quarter, the Enforcers scored a touchdown with two minutes remaining.

But it wasn’t enough. The Centurions won 27-16. Afterward, both teams gathered on the 50-yard line and held a prayer for Simmons. Then the Enforcers presented their opponents with their share of the money raised in his memory - a check for $2,500.

Tragic loss brings city together
By Doug McIntyre, Columnist
Article Last Updated: 02/23/2008 08:43:35 PM PST

NEVER, in my nearly twenty-five years in Los Angeles, have I been more proud to live here. A little more than a week ago, this city paid tribute to slain SWAT Officer Randy Simmons. In a ceremony lasting the better part of a beautiful sunny Friday, Officer Simmons was remembered as a cop’s cop, the epitome of what a badge can be. But as his life was presented by witness after witness, the magnitude of our loss was driven home.

The loss of Randy Simmons brought this city together in ways I have never experienced. For three-plus hours, blacks and whites, Hispanics and Asians wept together, sang together, smiled in fond remembrance together, for a life brilliantly lived. For one day at least, our local leaders had genuine heartfelt eloquence, and the city of Los Angeles presented itself to the world as a city of competence and a city that cares.

We have lost great cops before, and that’s no small thing.

However, Randy Simmons was so much more. He was the embodiment of manhood. Not the hyper-Stallone, steel-cage fighting, gangsta nitwit version of manhood marketed to young boys in movies, music, TV and video games. Randy Simmons was not just a hero on the street; he was a hero at home. A father in the truest sense of the word, a husband, a son, a brother, a friend, a neighbor.

When a deeply disturbed failure assassinated his family in Winnetka and called 911 challenging the police to “come and get me,” Los Angeles sent the very best in the world: SWAT Officers James Veenstra and Randal Simmons. With the hope of saving those already shot by a madman and with the hope of rescuing a terrified hostage hiding in a closet, James Veenstra entered the home and was promptly shot in the face at nearly point-blank range. Without hesitation, Randy Simmons went in to save his wounded partner, and now the wound is felt citywide.

I never knew Officer Simmons. That is my loss. I feel it deeply, and can barely imagine the void felt by his children, Matthew and Gabriella, and Lisa Simmons, Randy’s wife of 17 years.

The funeral service for Officer Simmons was telecast locally. It was a brilliant decision to carry this event to hundreds of thousands beyond the 10,000 plus packed into the Crenshaw Christian Center’s Faith Dome. The front-page photos of the pageantry, as impressive as it was, hardly told the story. Only the grief and joy of Randall Simmons’ life, as recounted by those who lived it with him, could impress upon us the magnitude of our loss.

This was reality TV that elevated human dignity.

We live in justifiably cynical times. Randal Simmons was the antidote to cynicism. He was the cure for all that ails today’s Los Angeles. He represented not only the best of what a man should be, the best of what a law enforcement officer should be, he represented the best of what a person of faith should be. He was loving and nonjudgmental, he talked the talk and walked the walk.

The funeral of Office Randy Simmons allowed us to see another side of the Los Angeles Police Department - the best side. This is the real LAPD, not the blunders of MacArthur Park, or as Mayor Villaraigosa said to applause, “not the LAPD of consent decrees” and certainly not the loathsome and vile depiction presented in the Academy Award-winning film “Crash.”

This is an LAPD made up of thousands of men and women of all religions, all races, working for a common purpose: “To Protect and Serve.” Occasionally the cops come up short. That shouldn’t minimize the ideals of a department charged with securing one of the most complex and challenging urban environments on the planet. It shouldn’t minimize our sense of gratitude. We have a great Police Department.

The funeral for Officer Randy Simmons was theatrical perfection: dignified, eloquent, musical, faith-affirming, joyous, tear-wrenching, inspiring yet, unexpressed but just below the surface, enraging.

Why Randy? Why did Randal Simmons have to die?

Maybe so the rest of us would care just a little bit more about the city he loved. The City of Angels lost an angel. But Los Angeles could gain a higher sense of civic pride and connectedness if we take the lessons of Randy Simmons’ life and live them ourselves. This would be a tribute even Officer Simmons would not be too humble to accept.

Doug McIntyre hosts the “McIntyre in the Morning” program on Talk Radio 790 KABC, weekdays from 5 to 9 a.m.

Police Protective League Remembers SWAT Officer

Randy Simmons, 51, Killed In Standoff

LOS ANGELES The president of the Los Angeles Police Protective League said that the fatal shooting of an LAPD SWAT officer, the first in the history of the elite team, is a “devastating” and “shocking” reminder of the risks officers face on a day-to-day basis.

Veteran LAPD SWAT Officer Randy Simmons, 51, was killed inside a Winnetka home on Thursday morning. He was involved in a gun battle with a man who admitted to killing three family members before the standoff began.

It was the first fatality in the history of the elite LAPD SWAT team, which was created in 1967 and went on full-time status in 1971.

“Every day when we go on duty we know the dangers we are facing, yet it is still devastating and shocking when we lose one of our own,” said Tim Sands, president of the LAPPL, the union representing the LAPD rank-and-file.

“Officer Randal Simmons was a good friend, loyal partner and an exemplary officer. He was proud to be a member of the LAPD SWAT, despite the risks that came with that assignment, and today that bravery cost him his life. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family members, who lost a good man.”

Officer James Veenstra, the 51-year-old husband of an LAPD captain, was also hit during the standoff. His injuries are considered critical, but he is expected to survive.

“Our thoughts and prayers are also with Officer James Veenstra, who is recovering from surgery, and his family, including his wife, (LAPD) Capt. Michelle Veenstra. We pledge our support to the families of both Officer Simmons and Officer Veenstra, to help them through this difficult time,” Sands said.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League represents the more than 9,000 rank and file members of the Los Angeles Police Department.