Riverside County Supervisors Honor Slain Deputy Darnell Calhoun

The Riverside County Board of Supervisors Tuesday honored slain deputy Darnell Calhoun, remembering him as a devoted husband, father and son and a man of God.

“My heart is broken for you,” Supervisor Chuck Washington said. “I was inspired by the number of people that came to both vigils and to the funeral. I was there, witnessed it, and saw the great outpouring of love, and I know that that perhaps maybe softens the blow a bit, but it doesn’t replace the loss of Darnell.”

The 30-year-old deputy was shot while responding to a call for an “unknown trouble” at a home in the unincorporated area of Lakeland Village, according to the sheriff’s department. Calhoun was taken to a local hospital where he later died.

I think that’s one thing this community has to make sure that we do, and that is to continue to say his name, continue to share memories, because if we don’t then his life will be forgotten,” Supervisor Karen Spiegel said while presenting the proclamation. “And there’s one thing we have to do is never forget.”

Calhoun joined the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office in February of last year and was assigned to the Lake Elsinore Station. He previously spent two years with the San Diego Police Department.

“This family truly will be suffering for the rest of their lives as they try and cope and they remember the sacrifice that Darnell gave,” Sheriff Chad Bianco said. “I am thankful to all of them for their belief in God, and that they know that there is something bigger than us. There is something bigger than this evil that we have to deal with every day, and that is a comfort to them as they try and get through this.”

Calhoun leaves behind two young children and a widow pregnant with a third child, all of whom were at the meeting.

Watch a full video recording of the meeting here.