Massive Police Turnout Honors Fallen Massachusetts Recruit at Funeral After Training Tragedy
A significant law enforcement presence gathered in Worcester on Saturday to remember a state police recruit who died after becoming unresponsive during a training exercise.
Enrique Delgado-Garcia, 25, died at a hospital on September 13, a day after becoming unresponsive during a defensive tactics drill in a boxing ring and experiencing a “medical crisis,” according to investigators. The state attorney general has already appointed an attorney to head an independent investigation into Delgado-Garcia’s death, whose funeral was held Saturday.
Delgado-Garcia’s mother and others have demanded answers and responsibility from the probe, and she has questioned if the training exercise was excessively violent.
Police carried Delgado-Garcia’s casket, covered in an American flag, from a funeral home to the event on Saturday. A bagpiper performed “Going Home,” and Gov. Maura Healey ordered flags to be lowered to half-staff across the state.
Delgado-Garcia’s funeral occurred against a backdrop of calls for responsibility that extended beyond his family. The Latino Law Enforcement Group of Boston and Lawyers for Civil Rights of Boston have both published public comments urging transparency in the inquiry into Delgado-Garcia’s death.
Lawyers for Civil Rights stated that the state must “immediately suspend anyone potentially involved and responsible for the fatal boxing match to ensure the safety and well-being of the remaining cadets in the Massachusetts State Police Academy,” as well as make other safety and accountability improvements.
On Saturday, the Massachusetts State Police and the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office did not immediately reply to calls for comment.
Delgado-Garcia of Worcester died following a boxing ring workout at the Massachusetts State Police Academy in New Braintree, about 60 miles (97 kilometers) west of Boston. Following Delgado-Garcia’s death, Massachusetts State Police announced that full-contact boxing training for recruits has been discontinued.
Delgado-Garcia was born in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, and relocated to Worcester at a young age, according to an obituary posted on the Mercadante Funeral Home & Chapel’s website. He received his undergraduate degree from Westfield State University in Massachusetts before beginning his career as a victim advocate in the Worcester district attorney’s office, according to the obituary.
“Enrique was a remarkable young man who dedicated himself to the service of others.” “He had always wanted to be a State Trooper and make a difference in the lives of the people in his community,” according to the obituary.