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A listener note.

This episode contains adult content and language.

This may not be suitable for all listeners. Senator, quick mark! On any other Labor Day, the town of Fox Lake, Illinois would be filled with people out for a good time, fishing, boating, and drinking in the bars. But on Labor Day, the streets were lined with thousands of mourners,

all here to pay tribute to a fallen hero, a local police officer,

the 25th cop nationwide, to be shot dead in the line of duty that year.

Let's begin our service. It had been one of the hottest summers on record, and inside the crowded high school

theater where the funeral was taking place, the temperature was almost unbearable.

On the patrol division commander for the Fox Lake Police Department.

At the front of the theater was the officer's casket, draped in an American flag.

With great honor that I make this presentation.

Sitting in the back was a gray-haired man in his late 50s with a silver goatee and a thick pair of glasses.

When I got there, it kind of took me back and it was like, wow,

this is unbelievable. Medal of honor. George Falenko was a police chief in a neighboring town.

He'd been to officer funerals before, but nothing like this. It was just incredible how many

officers were there from how many departments from all over

the country. George was dressed in his one good suit. He watched as the other Fox Lake officers

took the stage to speak. Joe was a friend of mine for 30 years. His saying, embrace the sock.

Well, we're doing it today.

When we were growing up, we all knew Joe was a hero,

...