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Sacramento police officer was 'marble wrapped in velvet'

ROSEVILLE, Calif. (AP) - To her godfather, Sacramento Police Officer Tara O'Sullivan was "marble wrapped in velvet."

The 26-year-old rookie officer killed last week while answering a domestic violence call was tough but compassionate, Gary Roush said at her funeral service Thursday. She loved her family, friends and police colleagues, enjoyed helping people and from an early age knew she wanted a career in law enforcement, he said.

"She made every person she knew believe they were her best friend," Roush said. "I was moved by that way she dealt with others, by the importance of people to her."

She came from an exceptionally tightknit family and was such a lover of dogs that Roush joked he sometimes wondered which species she cared about more - "people or pooches."

The service brought hundreds of officers from dozens of departments. And it brought parts of Sacramento to a halt, if only for a moment.

Families gathered along parts of the roughly 30-mile (48-kilometer) funeral procession following the service, waving American flags and pausing to pay their respects to a young officer who may never have patrolled their suburbs and bedroom communities but whose killing still touched them.

"Tara made a real difference in countless lives in just a short amount of time," Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn said.

Colleagues described O'Sullivan as someone destined for police work. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, she was competitive, taking to sports at a young age and working toward a career in law enforcement when she was a teenager.

A graduate of Sacramento State University, she charted out a career with the police department of California's capital city. O'Sullivan wanted to work on a K-9 unit, the mounted patrol, a gang unit, the SWAT team and someday be a captain, said Brent Kaneyuki, of the Sacramento police academy.

O'Sullivan was shot in what authorities described as an ambush while she helped a woman retrieve belongings from a home on June 19. It was 45 minutes before police got to O'Sullivan while a heavily armed gunman engaged in an hours-long standoff with officers before his capture.

O'Sullivan later died at a hospital. She was the first Sacramento police officer killed on the job in 20 years.

Adel Sambrano Ramos, who is charged in the shooting, made his first court appearance Monday. He is charged with murder, which could lead to the death penalty.

Ramos, 45, also is charged with the attempted murder of O'Sullivan's training officer and illegally possessing two assault-style rifles. He has not entered a plea.

FILE - In this Wednesday, June 19, 2019 file photo, a Sacramento Police officer responds to the shooting of a fellow officer in Sacramento, Calif. Hundreds of law enforcement officials on Thursday, June 27, 2019, will mourn the rookie Sacramento police officer, Tara O'Sullivan, killed in what authorities described as an ambush while she responded to a domestic violence call. The officer had been with the police department about six months when she was shot June 19, 2019. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File) The Associated Press
FILE - In this undated file photo released by the Sacramento Police Department is Officer Tara O' Sullivan. Hundreds of law enforcement officials on Thursday, June 27, 2019, will mourn the rookie Sacramento police officer, O'Sullivan, killed in what authorities described as an ambush while she responded to a domestic violence call. The officer had been with the police department about six months when she was shot June 19, 2019. (Sacramento Police Department via AP, File) The Associated Press
Susie Lara stands outside the Bayside Adventure Church during the funeral services for Sacramento Police Officer Tara O' Sullivan in Roseville, Calif., Thursday, June 27, 2019. Lara, 73, a local resident, came to the church to honor O'Sullivan, who was shot and killed last week responding to a domestic violence call. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) The Associated Press
A ring circles the sun as Sacramento Police Officer Tony Yager and his horse, Dancer, attend the funeral services for Sacramento Police Officer Tara O'Sullivan at the Bayside Adventure Church in Roseville, Calif., Thursday, June 27, 2019. O'Sullivan was shot and killed last week responding to a domestic violence call. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) The Associated Press
A photograph of Sacramento Police Officer Tara O'Sullivan, center with her parents, Kelley, left, and Denis O'Sullivan, right, is displayed on a video screen as people enter the Bayside Church, Adventure Campus, for a memorial service in Roseville, Calif., Thursday, June 27, 2019. Tara O'Sullivan was shot and killed last week responding to a domestic violence call. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) The Associated Press
Law enforcement officers salute the hearse carrying the casket of Sacramento Police Officer Tara O'Sullivan to the Bayside Adventure Church for memorial services in Roseville, Calif., Thursday, June 27, 2019. O'Sullivan was shot and killed last week responding to a domestic violence call. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) The Associated Press
Denis O' Sullivan, left, and his wife, Kelley, second from left, follow the flag draped casket of their daughter Sacramento Police Officer Tara O'Sullivan into the Bayside Church, Adventure Campus in Roseville, Calif., for a memorial service, Thursday, June 27, 2019. O'Sullivan was shot and killed last week responding to a domestic violence call. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) The Associated Press
Susie Lara kneels and prays outside the Bayside Church, Adventure Campus, during the funeral service for Sacramento Police Officer Tara O' Sullivan in Roseville, Calif., Thursday, June 27, 2019. Lara, a local resident, came to the church to honor O'Sullivan who was shot and killed last week while responding to a domestic violence call. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli) The Associated Press
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