Officer wounded during Dallas ambush: 'We're all still grieving'

AUSTIN — Every time Senior Cpl. Rich Whitt drives through downtown Dallas, his mind darts back to the night of July 7, 2016.

"You just couldn't do anything," Whitt said Tuesday. "That's the hardest part."

Elmar "Lee" Cannon, a Dallas Area Rapid Transit officer who was injured that night, added, "We're all still grieving."

It's been more than six months since Micah Johnson took the lives of five officers and wounded seven others, including Cannon and Gretchen Rocha, who had been a Dallas cop for less than a month.

The investigation is ongoing, and many questions about Johnson's firepower and the city's response remain unanswered. For officers in Dallas, the last six months have been marked by rebuilding.

On Tuesday afternoon, Gov. Greg Abbott honored the Dallas law enforcement community during his State of the State speech. Pledging to support legislation to make targeting a police officer a hate crime, Abbott gestured to where Cannon and Rocha sat on the House floor.

Democrats and Republicans, staffers and the public, rose and applauded.

Speaking after Abbott's speech, Rocha said the support law enforcement received in the aftermath of Johnson's deadly ambush was invaluable. 

"The outpouring of love, prayers — we got hearts from little kids, colored hearts," Rocha told The Dallas Morning News. "The support, though, that was so unexpected did make a difference."

"It just takes time," Cannon added. "You get back up. It's not a 'get over it' thing. It's a 'get through it' thing."

Rocha and Cannon visited the Capitol with Whitt and Senior Cpls. Jeremy Borchardt and Eddie Coffey. The officers said they were happy the Senate pledged to create a $25 million grant program so police departments can buy protective gear that can withstand the kind of ammunition Johnson used in the Dallas ambush.

Shortly after Abbott's speech, Dallas Rep. Jason Villalba also filed legislation fulfilling Abbott's call to make targeting law enforcement officers because of their profession a hate crime. 

When asked what else they'd like to see lawmakers focus on, one officer jokingly whispered, "pension."

State lawmakers have to approve any locally designed fix for the city's ailing police and fire pension system, which is on track to be insolvent in the next decade. But they've made clear they absolutely will not help fund the system's $3.3 billion hole.

"None of us got into this for the money," Borchardt said of the pension's troubles. "It's hard to explain why we do what we do. It really is. It's about the brotherhood; it's about the guy or girl next to you.

"It's our job. It's what we signed up for."