Jessica Davis (right) with Susan Oliver at the White House. (Placer County Sheriff’s Department)
Jessica Davis’ husband, Detective Michael Davis Jr., was slain, allegedly by an illegal immigrant, 26 years to the day that his own father was shot and killed in the line of duty.
Donald Trump invited Jessica Davis to attend his speech to Congress on February 28 along with family members of others killed by undocumented immigrants, including the wife of Sacramento Sheriff’s Deputy Danny Oliver, who was shot and killed in the same crime spree as Michael Davis.
A photo of the front of the funeral procession for @PlacerSheriff fallen Detective Michael Davis. #ThinBlueLine http://t.co/C4Yr6cH6v7
The man accused of killing both Davis and Oliver is an undocumented immigrant with a serious criminal record and is scheduled to stand trial for the 2014 slayings in March 2017.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Michael Davis Was Gunned Down in the Midst of a Pursuit of a Cop Killer
The crime spree started when illegal immigrant Luis Monroy Bracamonte (AKA Marcelo Marquez) allegedly shot Danny Oliver in the head when Oliver approached his vehicle in the Sacramento, California area.
Bracamonte then eluded authorities for hours, injuring another deputy and shooting a motorist in the head in a failed carjacking along the way.
That’s when Davis allegedly encountered the suspect. Davis was a sheriff’s deputy for Placer County in California. According to the county’s memorial page, he “arrived in the area with his partner. As Detective Davis and other deputies exited their cars, the suspect, who had been concealed in a carport, opened fire on the deputies with a rifle. Detective Davis was immediately shot along with another responding deputy.”
2. Detective Davis’ Own Father Also Died in the Line of Duty
Michael Davis Sr. (Riverside County Sheriff’s Department)
Tragically, Davis’ own father also was a law enforcement officer who died in the line of duty. In fact, the father and son died on exactly the same day – 26 years apart.
“Detective Davis’ father, Detective Michael David Davis Sr., was killed in the line of duty on October 24th, 1988, while serving with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. Their line of duty deaths occurred exactly 26 years apart to the day,” the memorial page for Davis Jr. says.
The father, according to Riverside County, was an investigator who was “involved in Operation Border Ranger, a joint drug smuggling interdiction operation being conducted in Imperial County by six Southern California Sheriff’s Departments, the National Guard and Federal authorities… the California Army National Guard helicopter, which carried Investigator Davis and other members of the team, crashed into the mountainous area of western Imperial County. The aircraft was immediately consumed by fire and all aboard died instantly.”
Davis’ father left behind five children. Davis Jr. was only 16 when his father died.
3. The Suspect Was a Twice Deported Illegal Immigrant With a Criminal Record
Luis Bracamontes (AKA Marcelo Marquez.) Mugshot photo.
The suspect, Luis Monroy Bracamonte (sometimes called Marcelo Marquez) had already been deported from the United States twice before the two officers were slain, first for a drug crime in 1997 and then again in 2001, KCRA reported. He told Fox40 he was part of a cartel. Bracamonte also told the television station in an exclusive interview that his wife, Janelle Monroy Marquez, “was cheating on him with his brother and a couple she met on Craigslist. Marquez says he ended up in Sacramento while aimlessly looking for the couple’s address.” That’s when he encountered the first officer, Danny Oliver.
KCRA reported that the Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff’s Office, “had Marquez in custody four times” as far back as 1996. He was released to ICE after spending several months behind bars but in 1998 “Marquez was arrested on the possession of narcotic drugs, misconduct involving weapons and possession of marijuana. He was jailed and released,” according to KCRA.
It didn’t end there. In 2001, he was arrested again on drug charges; at the time of the crime spree, he and his wife – who was in the car when it occurred – were living in Utah, according to the television station, which added that he worked as a house painter.
4. Legislation Was Introduced in the Names of Oliver & Davis & Jessica Called Her Husband a ‘Great Protector’
In a recorded message at her husband’s funeral, Jessica Davis said, according to the Auburn Journal, that her husband “served his community with everything that he had. He was a husband and he loved so hard. He was a father who adored all of his children. And a coach who mentored others children. It was just part of him but when it came to me he was always a great protector. That I’m grateful for because eight years doesn’t seem long enough. But they were pretty amazing.”
She added, according to the newspaper, “Everything was always full force and go. He always said that tomorrow wasn’t promised to us. He was my best friend and my hero. And now he’s everybody’s hero. But it’s not good-bye. It’s just see you later. I love you.”
The Placer County Sheriff’s Department posted photos of Jessica Davis, Susan Oliver and others at the White House on February 28, writing, “Today Jessica Davis and Susan Oliver are personal guests of President Donald J. Trump and are visiting him at the White House. Jessica and Susan are honoring the memory of their husbands, Detective Michael Davis J.R. and Deputy Danny Oliver. The two deputies were killed in the line of duty while protecting our citizens. Senate Bill 1640, referred to as the Michael Davis J.R. Danny Oliver law, is being proposed as a result of their loss. Jessica and Susan are accompanied by Placer County Sergeant Batine Ramirez and Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department Lieutenant Dan Donelli.”
Then Senator Jeff Sessions, now Attorney General, proposed new legislation to toughen how the government responds to illegal immigrants with criminal records in the officers’ names. The legislation has not yet passed although, as a candidate, President Trump expressed support for it.
5. Davis Jr. Was a Law Enforcement Veteran Who had Four Children With Jessica
Det. Michael Davis, Jr. (Michael Davis memorial page)
According to CBS local, the sheriff said that Davis was 42 when he died and he had four children with his wife, Jessica.
“He first came to the sheriff’s department as a reserve deputy sheriff in 1996. He then became a police officer with the city of Auburn in 1996, and he came to the sheriff’s department in 1999—15 years ago. He served his last 10 years as a homicide investigator,” the sheriff said, according to the television station.
Pam Davis Owens, a former law enforcement officer who is Michael Davis aunt said of the Sessions’ legislation: “If we just obey the laws that we have, deport these people. Don’t let them in here. We’ll be okay. We don’t need more laws. We need to enforce what we have, and that’s what Sen. Sessions is trying to do.”
She blamed California Gov. Jerry Brown for Davis’ death and that of Oliver, saying, according to Fox News, “He got right up on stage and told the illegals they were welcome in the state of California. And by welcoming the illegals in, he’s bringing more in. We don’t need more. We need to stop the illegal immigration and protect our citizens and our law enforcement.”