Community members mourn the loss of Sergeant Gutzwiller with memorial
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KION) Sergeant Damon Gutzwiller was killed in a shooting ambush over the weekend. A memorial dedicated to him has grown outside the Santa Cruz County Sheriff's Office.
Out at the memorial on Monday night, people continued adding their own personal touches to it--even those who didn't know him.
“We’re just here to pay our respects to him and his family,” visitor Nancy Alsip said.
"We feel like we need to do something," visitor Stacey Iverson said. "And we’re not sure what to do. So, I guess, just coming here."
Many like them just showed up, with things like flowers. Thousands of people have already expressed their sadness on social media.
“Even without everything going on, it just would’ve been a tough loss for the community regardless,” Alsip said.
But visitors said they couldn't ignore the timing of the tragedy.
“A lot of crazy things going on right now,” visitor Keith Iverson said.
Some of the signs in the memorial reference the tension between law enforcement and civilians on a national level.
Signs had "police lives matter" and other similar phrases written on them--referencing controversy over the Black Lives Matter Movement.
Still, the visitors said not all of them agree with the sentiment.
“There’s no reason to make a point politically with any of it," Alsip said. "It’s just him and his family and the community.”
KION spoke with an alleged victim of police brutality who wasn't willing to go on camera. But he said Sgt. Gutzwiller had nothing to do with his experience. So he doesn't hold him accountable. Instead, he said he's grieving the loss of a man who helped his community.
Sgt. Gutzwiller leaves behind a pregnant wife and child. The Sheriff's Office has set up a fundraiser for his family.
