Vigil honors fallen Oak Park Detective Allan Reddins: 'His legacy will continue to inspire us all'

OAK PARK, Ill. (WLS) -- A community came together Friday evening to remember Oak Park Police Detective Allan Reddins.

The detective was shot and killed last week when confronting a man who had allegedly left a bank nearby with a gun.

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Chicago man Jerell Thomas is accused in the fatal shooting.

Thomas has been charged with first degree murder, felony possession of a stolen firearm and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon for the shooting death of the veteran lawman. The offender also faces attempted murder of a peace officer for shooting and wounding another responding officer.

"This is a pivotal moment in our history to come together and to be united as one." Oak Park Police Department Chief Shatonya Johnson said.

The community packed a courtyard at Village Hall, braving the frigid weather to remember a police detective and father who gave five years serving and protecting the people of Oak Park.

"What we yearn for is simply human connection, a quiet presence," Oak Park Police Chaplain Rev. Adonna Reid said.

A somber setting was cast in shadows while lit candles illuminated a community's grief.

"Together we vow that this sacrifice will not be forgotten, and his legacy will continue to inspire us all," Oak Park Village President Vicki Scaman said.

That legacy is felt in Oak Park resident Marisa Muñoz's home, where she says Reddins occasionally responded to her ailing father.

"You made a different in Oak Park," Muñoz said. "You'll always hold a place in my heart and my family's heart. You were there for my dad."

Vigil attendee Brenda Irizarry's late husband was a California police officer who was gunned down in 1983 while serving a search warrant.

"It's like a wound that doesn't heal," Irizarry said.

Brenda Irizarry's late husband was a California police officer who was gunned down in 1983 while serving a search warrant. She said her decades-old heartache still lingers with her, as she shows support for Reddins' family and her new Oak Park community that's now reeling from a tragedy that's only days old.

"And, it just hurts. It still hurts," Irizarry said. "And, I'm hurting for this family. I'm hurting for his son."

In a statement, Detective Reddins' son, who is a Morehouse College honor student, called his late father his hero and now his guardian angel.

Reddins will be laid to rest next week. A wake begins at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, Dec. 12. followed by a funeral service at 11 a.m. at Apostolic Church of God, located at 6320 S. Dorchester Ave. in Chicago.

For those interested in donating to support a fund for the Reddins family, Oak Park Lodge #8, Fraternal Order of Police, is currently collecting donations via Zelle to the following email address: oakparklodge8@gmail.com.

A QR code to contribute via Zelle is also available at www.oak-park.us/reddins.

Money raised will go directly to a financial account that has been set up by the Fraternal Order of Police in support of the Reddins the family, in particular for his son who attends college out of state and his mother who is receiving medical treatment, Oak Park officials said. For more information, contact Lodge 8 Secretary Joseph Nash at oakparklodge8@gmail.com.

The Reddins family said in a statement Wednesday, "The Family of Detective Allan Reddins mourns the loss of their father, son, brother and friend. Allan was a proud father of his son, an honor student at Morehouse College, who states, 'my dad is my hero and now my guardian angel. I am now more determined than ever to continue to make both of my parents proud.'