[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 110 (Wednesday, September 7, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H7700]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               IN MEMORY OF SPECIALIST ERNEST DALLAS, JR.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, just before we left at the end of July, I 
received notice from the Department of Defense about the death of one 
of my constituents, Specialist Ernest Dallas, Jr., in the country of 
Iraq on July 24. I wanted to take some time this evening to talk about 
the life of Specialist Ernest Dallas. Many of the remarks that I am 
going to make tonight were taken from an article that appeared in the 
Denton Record Chronicle on July 27, written by Matthew Haag.
  Mr. Speaker, I think it is appropriate tonight to honor the memory of 
Specialist Ernest Dallas. He was from my district, the 26th 
Congressional District of Texas, and he was serving his country during 
Iraqi Freedom. Again, he died on July 24 with three other soldiers when 
a roadside bomb exploded next to their Bradley fighting vehicle. 
Specialist Dallas was assigned as a scout in the Third Armored Cavalry 
Regiment in Baghdad. He was 21 years old.
  Celebrating and recognizing the life of Specialist Dallas is 
important. He was a graduate of Fred Moore High School, and he enlisted 
for a 3-year term in the Army in November of 2003 because he wanted to 
serve his country and he felt he needed the training that he would be 
provided to meet his future goals, a future that he hoped included a 
job as a Denton police officer.
  Specialist Dallas was a loving family member and he always took time 
to phone home to get his family caught up on news of what was going on 
with their unit. He was the first Denton, Texas, resident to die in the 
conflict in Iraq.
  His first love was baseball, his family said. He started playing when 
he was 9, and he idolized the former Texas Rangers Catcher Ivan (Pudge) 
Rodriguez. In 2000, he decided to forgo baseball and enrolled in the 
Denton Police Department's Citizen Youth Academy. He turned out to have 
another dream. He wanted to be a Denton policeman, said his stepfather, 
Manuel Sauseda. In the program, Specialist Dallas would ride along with 
Denton police officers.
  As soon as school let out in the afternoon, Specialist Dallas would 
race home and get ready to go out with the officers. The program was 
scheduled from 3 p.m. until midnight when the officers' shift was over. 
But his stepfather said that Specialist Dallas would frequently call at 
midnight and ask to stay a little longer, and a little longer 
frequently turned out to be 6 a.m. in the morning. His mother joked 
that the neighbors must have grown suspicious of the police cars that 
were constantly stopping by her house and bringing him home. I know 
what the neighbors thought: that little boy must be in so much trouble, 
said his mother, Charlene Sauseda.
  Specialist Dallas' family said he always wanted to protect the people 
he loved. So 2 years after 9/11, he enlisted in the Army. He said that 
the attacks inspired him to enlist. He saw how it affected everybody, 
his mother said. Enough was enough, said Ernie. He wanted to go over 
there and take care of things.
  I had the opportunity to sit down with Specialist Dallas' family 
during the August break and they told me of his love of the Police 
Academy. They told me how he came to love the Police Academy. 
Specialist Dallas was sometime earlier prone to leadership that was 
taking him in the wrong direction. He was brought home one afternoon by 
a sheriff's deputy in Denton, a gentleman I know well, named Greg 
Levling, who now works for the Dallas Sheriff's Department.
  Apparently, Specialist Dallas was at that time, at 8 years old, a 
lookout man for someone who had figured out how to get free pinball 
games on a pinball machine. Specialist Dallas was to watch and tell if 
anyone was coming. Well, when the sheriff's deputy came around the 
corner, Specialist Dallas sang out ``Here comes somebody.'' The sheriff 
brought him home and his mother said that the sheriff's deputy, Mr. 
Levling, provided some firm direction for the young man; and it was 
then and there that he got his love for the police force and his wish 
to, hopefully, one day serve in the military.
  Just a few weeks prior to his death, Specialist Dallas sent an 
engagement ring to his girlfriend.
  He was truly a soldier who understood his duty, and he planned for a 
future beyond the service to his country.
  Mr. Speaker, it was my honor to represent Specialist Dallas. I extend 
my deepest sympathies to his family. On behalf of the United States 
Congress, I want his family to know that his service and their 
sacrifice were deeply appreciated and we thank them.

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