Baton Rouge officer died doing job he loved
BATON ROUGE, LA (KTRK) -- It's been a difficult two days for Baton Rouge. It's been especially tough on the families that lost loved ones in the shooting that took three officers' lives and injured three others.
Montrell Jackson was one of the officers who died. His family shared his story with Eyewitness News.
"A part of us died with him. We're going to move on, but it's really going to be hard," said Charles Cavalier, Jackson's uncle.
Cavalier says his nephew died doing a job he was honored to do.
Cavalier remembers when Jackson joined the force. He even wrote a character letter for Jackson, telling the police department the man his nephew was.
"When he wanted to join the academy, I asked him, 'Are you going to the police force? Yeah. And I'd like you to do a letter of recommendation.' So I wrote it and a few weeks or so later, he got hired," said Cavalier.
It was a job that proved challenging for Jackson and other officers over the past couple of weeks.
Days before the shooting, Jackson posted a comment on Facebook discussing how he, as an officer in uniform, was getting nasty looks.
In his post he said, "Don't let hate infect your hearts."
His uncle said that kind of positive attitude reflects Jackson's personality.
"If you called him, he never had a negative word. He always said, 'I will see if I can help you'," said Cavalier.
Jackson served on the Baton Rouge police force for ten years before his life was taken. While he may not be here, his uncle says his memory will always live on.
"As long as I have breath in me, I'm going to do everything I can to keep his memory alive. He was such a sweet kid, couldn't have been any closer than my own son," said Cavalier.
Jackson's daughter turned 4 months old the day after the shooting.
