[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 2]
[House]
[Page 2299]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




  MOURNING THE DEATH OF LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT OFFICER RICARDO 
                               LIZARRAGA

  (Ms. WATSON asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, it is with deep sadness and regret that I 
rise to inform my colleagues of the death of Los Angeles Police 
Department Officer Ricardo Lizarraga, who was killed in the line of 
duty on Friday, February 20, 2004, while answering a domestic violence 
dispute in the area of Western and Vernon Avenue in my district. 
Officer Lizarraga became the first LAPD officer since 1998 to be shot 
and killed in the line of duty.
  Mr. Speaker, as many of us know, domestic violence calls can be the 
most volatile and unpredictable situations to which police officers 
respond. After a woman flagged down Officer Lizarraga's police car and 
asked for help, the officer and his partner went to remove an abusive 
boyfriend from her apartment. According to official accounts, the 
suspect emerged with a gun and shot the 30-year-old officer just below 
his bulletproof vest.
  Officer Lizarraga had only recently joined the police force 2 years 
ago. Fellow officers described him as cheerful, soft-spoken, 
hardworking, who loved his job and in April had landed an assignment on 
a fledgling special problems unit in the Newton division, where my 
father served and died of injuries related to his service. A fellow 
officer called Officer Lizarraga a gentle giant, who could look 
intimidating; but all one had to do was talk to him, and he would 
respond softly. He was very nice, very quiet, and it belied his 
stature.
  Officer Lizarraga was born and raised in Los Angeles and attended 
Hamilton High School and Santa Monica College. He worked for the Ralphs 
Supermarket chain before fulfilling a long-time goal of joining the 
LAPD in September 2001. He leaves a wife, Joyce, and a mother who 
resides in Mexico.
  Mr. Speaker, my deepest sympathies are extended to Officer 
Lizarraga's colleagues at the LAPD and his wife, family, and friends. 
It is my sincerest hope that Officer Lizarraga's death will not be in 
vain, but once again remind us that our business is unfinished in 
dealing with domestic violence, gang violence, and the proliferation of 
handguns which remain the weapons of mass destruction in many of our 
Nation's urban areas.

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