Vigil held in downtown Austin for fallen Dallas officers

A candlelight vigil was held for the five fallen Dallas police officers in downtown Austin almost a week after they were killed when a sniper opened gunfire during a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest in downtown Dallas. 

The vigil was organized by APA, APD and the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas, or CLEAT.

Several local leaders, including Austin Police Association president Ken Casady and Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo, spoke about the bravery of those five officers: Brent Thompson, Michael Krol, Patrick Zamarripa, Michael Smith, and Lorne Ahrens.

Rick Randall, the police department's Champlain, says this has been a rough week for law enforcement and that it is important to lift officers' morale during times like these. "Knowing that these men interspersed their bodies, literally put themselves in harm's way to protect demonstrators, to protect the public.. For me, it was another example of the character of the people who wear the badge," said Randall. 

Earlier tonight, NFL line backer Emmanuel Acho visited the University of Texas to have a panel discussion alongside Chief Acevedo about community policing and brutality.