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'It's a powerful thing to see': Police chaplain on deputy's funeral

Police chaplain Greg Gitschier said the public support for fallen Deputy Shirley and his family has been amazing.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The scene outside Southeast Christian Church for fallen Jefferson County Sheriff's Deputy Brandon Shirley's funeral included the fire department hoisting a large American flag in the air.

On Friday night, hundreds of people turned out in Fairdale to support the sheriff's office, police and Shirley's family.

Greg Gitschier, a former Jefferson County police officer and a former secret service agent, is one of nine police chaplains in Louisville. He said the public support for Shirley has been amazing.

"All the way down the line, you'll see people pulling their cars off with their flashers off or saluting, or holding a little American flag. It's a powerful thing to see all the way down I-64 and when they get off," Gitschier said of the procession.

Gitschier said he hopes after last year's reckoning for police, that this ambush killing may be a turning point for how the people view police.

"When people start realizing this is going to affect everyone in our community, that the officers just aren't there, they are covering such a large area or they feel like that they can't be proactive because the community hates them, or they don't have the support of the people, it's going to hurt everyone," Gitschier said.

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