On the morning of July 17, 2016, 41-year-old Baton Rouge Police Officer Matthew Lane Gerald began his patrol shift. A former Marine and decorated Army veteran who had served three tours in Iraq, Gerald had graduated from the police academy in March and was a father of two who had recently joined the Baton Rouge Police Department.

Shortly before 9:00 a.m., Gerald and other officers responded to a call outside a convenience store on Airline Highway. The response turned into a planned ambush by 29-year-old Gavin Long, a former Marine who traveled to Baton Rouge armed with two semi-automatic rifles and a pistol. Gerald and two other officers, 32-year-old Montrell Jackson and 45-year-old East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Deputy Brad Garafola, were killed; three other officers were wounded. Long was shot and killed after a brief shootout with a SWAT team. The East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney later concluded the officers who shot Long were justified.

Anyone who knew Matthew Gerald or was at the scene that morning and has information is asked to come forward.