Law enforcement agencies come together to honor fallen hero's son at his football game
When one police officer fell in the line of duty, his comrades stepped up to be there for his son.
A sea of law enforcement came together at a football game in south Texas to help celebrate Corporal Jose "Speedy" Espericueta’s son’s first football game of the season.
The tribute was organized by the Mission Police Department and Espericueta’s three best friends, who are also officers at Mission PD, according to a spokeswoman for the city.
MPD was joined by more than 100 other south Texas law enforcement officers at Cathey Middle School for the first home football game of the season on Sept. 21.
The Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office shared photos of Espericueta's son Joaquin on Twitter after the seventh grader was named honorary captain for the team.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection operations in the Rio Grande Valley also shared the story on Twitter with the hashtags "back the blue" and "honor first."
Espericueta was killed on June 20, 2019, after responding to a scene of a man shooting at his mother's car with a handgun, police in Mission, Texas, said after the shooting.
Espericueta tried to make contact with the suspect, who then ran away from him, police said. As the suspect ran, he turned around and began firing and exchanged gunfire with Espericueta and other officers.
The 13-year veteran police corporal died after he was shot multiple times by the suspect, who was later taken into custody.
Espericueta was survived by his wife and high school sweetheart Bobby, daughter Brianna and son Joaquin.
Sheriff Eddie Guerra and HCSO, DPS, Mission, Edinburg and McAllen officers previously showed their support for Joaquin when they attended his first day of school and welcomed him back to campus, lined up in front of the school last month on Aug. 26 in his father's absence.
