Boulder Officer Eric Talley's Father Homer Opens up about His Son after the Tragic Shooting

The father of the fallen police officer from Boulder County Police Department opened up about the loss of his son, officer Eric Talley as he recalled how he told him to be careful days before the shooting.

According to People, fallen officer Eric Talley was the first police officer to respond to the active shooter attack at a Boulder, Colorado store on Monday afternoon. Bystanders reportedly fled the scene while Talley ran in the opposite direction.

His dad Homer Talley told the outlet how the situation went down. “The people were running in the parking lot away, and he was running toward the grocery store,” he said.

Talley's bravery, unfortunately, cost him his life, and he was one of the ten people who were fatally killed during the mass shooting. He left his job in the private sector 11 years ago to become a police officer.

His father reflected on his sudden death. Talley reportedly told his dad that he was afraid of being killed in action and was worried about his family.

“Being a police officer, he had seen other officers go, and their families suffered because they were killed – and he didn’t want his family to go through that,” he said.

Homer mentioned that it was ironic that less than a week later, his family went through his worst fear and that he told him to be careful. Talley had seven children from ages 7 to 20.

The Boulder Chief Maris Herold shared that Talley had been with the police force since 2010. She reportedly called his actions in responding to the attack heroic:

"My heart goes out to the victims of this incident, and I'm grateful for the police officers who responded. I'm sorry about the loss of Officer Talley."

According to the Guardian, Talley was 51 years old, and other victims ranged in age from 20 to 65. Another victim was a manager at the King Soopers supermarket where the shooting took place.

Tributes continue to pour in for all the victims. A man named Jeremy Herko described Talley as one of his best friends and that he was a devout Christian.

According to KDVR, there is a way people can lend a helping hand to the victims. There are donation sites such as The Colorado Healing Fund and the Community Foundation Boulder County fund where people who have been affected can be assisted.

In January, Gabby Giffords mourned victims of rampage where she was shot in the head. It marked nine years since the similar incident that occurred recently also took the lives of six people.

At the time, they were meeting with Arizona Rep. Giffords, who also got injured in the process. She said what she learned from the experience was that it was not a setback that defines people but how they respond to it.