Wayne David, a 25-year veteran of the Metropolitan Police Department who died on the job last month, will be remembered Thursday by D.C.’s mayor, the police chief and his children at a procession and funeral.
David died in August after a gun he was trying to recover from a storm drain went off. He was 52.
David is set to receive full line-of-duty death honors in his procession.
It’s expected to go from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m., taking the Beltway inbound to Route 50 and passing the police’s Violent Crime Suppression Division on New York Avenue. Then, it’s set to turn right onto Bladensburg Road to Fort Lincoln Cemetery. Drivers should expect extra traffic during the procession.
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‘This wasn’t just a job’: Officer David remembered fondly
Since 2007, David worked as a crime scene search officer, recovering illegal guns across the city.
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D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said he took hundreds of weapons off the streets and called him a good man that many people looked up to.
Bowser and D.C. police chief Pamela Smith are scheduled to speak at David’s funeral at Ebenezer AME Church in Fort Washington, before the procession.
At David’s church, National Community Church in Southeast D.C., he was remembered as a man with a big heart and a big smile who loved to give back.
As a member of the congregation, he also provided security for the church.
“Very easy to talk to, very easy to engage and a non-threatening presence, in spite of the badge, in spite of having all the regalia,” Pastor Ernest Clover said.
“Officer David was the epitome of community policing,” a fellow officer wrote on Facebook. “He regularly worked overtime at the Metro stations and would challenge high school students with trivia before they could pass, just to make sure they were keeping up with their studies.”
Metro recently honored David for helping disarm a woman who was threatening officers with a knife at the Fort Totten station.
“For him this wasn’t just a job,” Executive Assistant Chief of Police Jeffrey Carroll said. “Every day he went out, he engaged the kids that were out there, trying to put them on the right path. Talking to people, making sure they were doing the right things.”
The man accused of dumping the gun that killed David turned himself into police custody. He was charged with carrying a pistol without a license.
