Local Police Departments To Pay Respects for Fallen Deputy Isaiah Cordero

Heroes supporting heroes.

"This has a big impact on all of us who wear the uniform," Chief of Police at Indio Police Department, Mike Washburn, shared.

From one desert department to another, the news of Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputy Isaiah Cordero’s passing rocked the police community.

"It’s a reminder to us how dangerous our positions can be," Chief Washburn continued. "More importantly, it’s a reminder to the communities as well as the family members that your loved one may not be coming home today. That’s the life that we’ve chosen when we chose to serve."

"It’s something that we carry with us throughout our career," Palm Springs Police Department’s Lieutenant Gustavo Araiza said. "One would hope that you could do this profession without experiencing something like this, but moving forward, it makes it difficult to concentrate on the things that go on day to day."

For the Palm Springs Police Department, this kind of tragedy hits close to home as two of their officers fell in the line of duty three years ago.

"The day that we got the news [about Cordero], a lot of our officers were wearing this tragedy and their emotions," Lt. Araiza shared. "This will be a time that not just our staff, but other agencies that have experienced something similar are going to re-experience those old wounds."

Even for Chief Washburn.

While the Indio Police Department has fortunately never seen an incident like this, Chief Washburn’s 30 year experience with the Seattle Police Department brought its own share of shocking news.

"It’s not the first time I’ve gotten this type of news," Chief Washburn explained. "The first reaction is really sadness. It hits home…too many officer funerals. It’s almost a visceral reaction.

So this Friday at 11 a.m. at Harvest Christian Fellowship Church in Riverside, our local officers will pay their respects to their brother in uniform.

"Together by providing support to one another, we’ll be able to get through it," Lt. Araiza said. "We’ll always keep him in our thoughts."

"This could have been me. It could have been my very own agency," Chief Washburn continued. "The loss of life is very tragic. We certainly want to wish all the best to the family, the co-workers and the community that Deputy Cordero served."

The Riverside County Deputy Sheriff Relief Foundation has since started a "Help A Hero" page where people can make donations to the Cordero family.

As of Saturday morning, it raised nearly $46,000 with a goal of $100,000.

You can find the link here.