Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca, who was fatally shot this year while on his way home from work on the Southwest Side, will be awarded the Chicago Police Memorial Foundation’s highest honor.
Huesca and four other officers will be honored with the foundation’s Valor award at a ceremony Wednesday evening at Theater on the Lake, 2401 N. Lake Shore Drive.
Huesca, 30, was driving home in his personal car wearing his police uniform when he was attacked early on the morning of April 21 in the 3100 block of West 56th Street, not far from his home in Gage Park. Officers responded to a ShotSpotter alert in the area and found Huesca with multiple gunshot wounds. He died at a hospital.
His Toyota 4Runner was stolen and later found a few blocks away.
The day after Huesca was killed, police released surveillance images of a person wanted for questioning in connection with the slaying. Four days later, police issued an arrest warrant for the suspected shooter, Xavier Tate, 22.
Tate was arrested more than two weeks after the shooting in west suburban Glendale Heights. He remains jailed on first-degree murder and aggravated vehicular hijacking charges.
Hundreds of people mourned Huesca at his funeral at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel.
“It feels like a nightmare,” Officer Christian Calderon said about his partner and best friend at Huesca’s funeral. “As we bid farewell to a man of honor, let us carry his legacy forward with every step we take. Let his bravery inspire us, his kindness humble us and his memory guide us.”
Edith Huesca, mother, of Officer Luis Huesca, clutches a Chicago flag alongside her daughter Lily O’Brien at the officer’s funeral April 29 in Ashburn.
Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times file
Eleven other officers and detectives who responded to and investigated Huesca’s shooting death will receive the foundation’s Distinguished Service Award. That includes members of the CPD Investigative Response Team, who recovered DNA evidence, fingerprints and cell phone data that led to Tate’s arrest.
“Through their tireless efforts, this family of blue have brought a measure of solace to the Huesca family, ensuring that justice is served in honor of Officer Luis Huesca’s memory,” the Chicago Police Memorial Foundation said in a statement.
The four other officers who will receive the Valor award: Officer Gregory Saint Louis, Officer Charles Villanova, Officer Lashon Morris and Field Training Officer Edwin Gramajo are all being recognized for incidents in which they were shot while on duty.
The Chicago Police Memorial Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides support to the families of officers who are killed or injured in the line of duty.