A member of the Los Angeles Police Department created this memorial for David Lee Briggs Sr., who died last month at age 56.
Story Published:
Mar 18, 2009 at 8:05 PM PDT
Story Updated:
Mar 24, 2009 at 11:52 PM PDT
A complete, regulation policeman’s funeral will be held Monday morning in the Rock Garden of the Los Angeles Police Academy for a man who was not a police officer — never had been; not for a single day.
David Lee Briggs Sr., a 57-year-old Oklahoma City native, wasn’t even a civilian employee of the LAPD. He was an entrepreneur. He was the LAPD’s shoeshine man who plied his trade in the lobby of Parker Center for 21 years, earning the moniker “Dr. Dave, Minister of Leather” from the throngs of LAPD personnel who grew to regard him as a member of the family — one of their own.
“Dr. Dave assisted department employees of all ranks by ensuring they had that extra shine on their shoes and leather gear and a kick in their step,” said Kevin J. Jablonski, chief psychologist.
Briggs became a fixture in police headquarters 21 years ago when he impressed then-Assistant Chief Robert Vernon with his eagerness to work and by his being a Vietnam veteran. I remember Vernon and Vernon really liked Vietnam vets, so he allowed Briggs to set up his shoeshine operation in the building.
Briggs was a likable fellow with whom police personnel bonded with ease. He could talk to and listen to anyone. “He knew a lot about what was going on in the police department because as he was shining shoes, he would listen to what higher ups in the department were saying,” said Fred Booker, retired LAPD lieutenant and current special assistant to Chief William Bratton.
“Oftentimes, he had information I didn’t even know,” Booker laughed.
Even though Dr. Dave lived in a gang-infested, crime-prone neighborhood, he always managed to navigate it and show up at Parker Center to administer those world class spit shines to which the police personnel had become accustomed. So they were surprised when he missed work for a day or two; worried when his absence stretched into a week, alarmed when his no-show status neared two weeks and panic-stricken when they marked him missing-in-action for a full two weeks and went looking for him.
Booker went to Briggs’ home and learned he had died two weeks prior. Then he checked with the coroner’s office where he discovered that Briggs’ body was still lying unclaimed and that the cause of his death had not yet been determined.
“Dr. Dave’s only living relative is his 23-year-old son who lives in Charleston, S.C.,” said Booker. “I talked to him several times and he assured me that had no financial means to bury his father, but that he did want him to have a decent burial,” Booker said. “I informed Chief Bratton of this, and he said ‘He will.’”
Chief Bratton, forthwith, arranged for a police funeral, complete with honor guard, for Briggs, and for the airline flight of David Lee Briggs Jr. from Charleston to attend his father’s final rites.
“It did not matter if you were the chief of police or the newest officer, Dr. Dave’s standard for spit-shined leather was second to none,” Bratton said. “He was just as much a member of the LAPD family as any of those who benefited from, and at times, took full credit for, his work.
“Truth be told, he ministered to us in more profound ways,” Bratton continued. “His care for our leather was surpassed only by his honest advice and listening ability. All future spit shines will be judged by the high standards of a man who enriched our lives. Parker Center will never be the same.”
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