Thirty-three years later, slain APD Officer Ralph Ablanedo's sacrifice was set in stone.
Ablanedo was a father, a husband, a brother, and a friend who died in the line of duty at the age of 26. Now everyone who drives through the 900 block of Live Oak in South Austin will know.
"He didn't turn and run. He didn't turn and hide,” said APD Chief Art Acevedo.
Chief Art Acevedo described the final moments of Ablanedo's life as etched on a granite memorial.
On May 18, 1978, Ablanedo stopped a car. Inside was David Lee Powell who had warrants out for his arrest. As Ablanedo spoke on the radio, Powell opened fire with an AK 47 assault rifle. He was struck 10 times.
“And though he was mortally wounded, he gave the information that he needed to put out and he did the things he needed to do to survive and to insure that that suspect was taken into custody before he hurt somebody else,” Acevedo said.
After 32 years, much of it on death row, Powell was executed last June.
Ablanedo's sister Irene wears a replica of her brother's badge around her neck and a bracelet with his name.
"He's always with me,” Irene Ablanedo said.
She has been by the spot many times, but Friday was a first for her mother.
"I've brought her by here one time and it's the first time she's been out on the street, so it's very difficult for her,” she said.
They stood watch with Ablanedo's widow Judy as the 5'4” tall memorial was cemented into the ground where the young officer died.
It took nearly a year and re-scheduling it three times to make this happen.
Officers initially wanted to put the memorial on the other side of the street where there is a sidewalk, but a neighboring property owner did not want it there. He got a signed petition trying to prevent officers from installing it.
Acevedo says it is his duty to keep an officer's memory alive.
"That is a commitment that can't be broken by protests. It can’t be broken by politics. It can't be broken by any one person,” Acevedo said.
Now Ablanedo's sacrifice can never be forgotten.
"He'll always have a place here on this street,” Irene said.
The memorial was donated by Rockdale Memorials. There are 20 in all for the APD officers killed in the line of duty.
