‘Collective heartbreak’: Dallas police officer killed in Oak Cliff shooting remembered (2024)

Apryl Washington Goree remembers the first time she met Darron Burks.

She was walking through Paul Quinn College. He was a student, pledging the Omega Psi Phi fraternity. She was working on the campus and a member of the sister sorority.

Almost immediately, she said, “we just became big sister, little brother.”

He stood by her side at her wedding. He helped her grieve the passing of her mother. When she battled breast cancer, he texted her Bible scriptures.

They worked together at Texans Can Academies, a charter school that helps students recover credits so they can graduate. Burks, she recalled, would give up his lunch break to help kids who needed extra one-on-one time.

But after years in the classroom, Burks decided to give back in a different way.

“He loved helping kids, but he wanted to help the community versus just the classroom,” Washington Goree said Friday. “He wanted to help on a broader spectrum.”

That desire fueled Burks’ decision to pursue a second venture in public service — as a Dallas police officer.

On Friday, Washington Goree and countless others across Dallas mourned the loss of their friend, colleague and family member but also paid tribute to a man they said was selfless in the pursuit of helping others.

Burks, 46, was killed in a southeast Oak Cliff shooting Thursday night, his mother, Cherie Jeffrey, told The Dallas Morning News when reached by phone Friday morning. Jeffrey said she was notified by officers at her home.

Dallas police Chief Eddie García said Burks was “executed” in his marked patrol car at a news conference Friday. A man, identified as 30-year-old Corey Cobb-Bey, approached Burks’ vehicle and fired a handgun, García said. Burks died at a hospital, police said.

Two officers who responded — Karissa David and Jamie Farmer — were injured in crossfire at the For Oak Cliff community center, according to Dallas police. Farmer was hit in the leg and released from the hospital Friday; David was struck in the face and remains in critical but stable condition, García said.

David and Farmer are five-year veterans with DPD, according to their Texas Commission on Law Enforcement records. In 2022, David was honored by the Sons of American Revolution for saving a man who crashed into a pole in 2020, according to a post on X.

Burks earned his peace officer license in November and graduated from the police academy in December, according to social media posts and his TCOLE record.

The shooter fled in a vehicle and was pursued by police. He was shot and killed after exiting his vehicle with a shotgun, police said. No motive has been disclosed, but García said the officers were targeted and the shooter had ties to a sovereign citizens ideology.

“The loss of Officer Burks is devastating,” council member Gay Donnell Willis said in a text message to The News. “Today’s sad news should serve as a reminder for Dallas residents not to take these brave souls, who serve us tirelessly everyday, for granted.”

Burks graduated from Richardson ISD’s Lake Highlands High School in May 1998, spokesperson Tim Clark confirmed in a text message. Burks attended Tyler Junior College and earned a bachelor’s degree from Paul Quinn College, where he played football and served as his fraternity’s president, according to his LinkedIn profile and TCOLE record.

At Texans Can Academies, he taught math.

Former student Justine Turk, now 34, met Burks as a teenager. Turk said she grew up without a consistent father figure — and her math teacher helped fill that hole, providing that “father love.”

“Him just letting me know how proud he was — constantly, constantly,” she said. “It just really gave me the push to keep on going.”

Turk was always good at math, and Burks noticed. She remembers the day he turned to her and said: “You’re going to teach the class today.”

Turk thought he was joking. Then he shot her his serious face.

“He was trying to make me see that I could be a leader,” Turk said.

Burks also worked with Boy Scouts of America, serving as a troop guide for an adult leadership course run by the organization.

Kirstin Dodd Baum, 34, was part of Burks’ patrol during a 2017 scouting trip. She could tell he was a teacher because he was excellent at explaining things to the group.

During one of the hikes, Dodd Baum started struggling. Burks turned to her and said: “You can do hard things.”

With his words motivating her, she made it to the top.

In the years since, Burks became the kind of friend that Dodd Baum could call at 2 a.m. if she was in a dark place.

“He would answer,” she said, “every time.”

Burks was there to support her after her father died, when he repeated the phrase that she will carry with her: You can do hard things.

Other friends of Burks recounted similar moments when he would show up for them in low moments.

“Anytime I had a loss in my family, I’d look up and he’s walking through the door,” said Raja Muhammad, 52, who knew Burks at Paul Quinn and co-taught with him at Texans Can.

When Muhammad runs into former students, they ask without fail: “Hey, you still cool with Mr. Burks?” The kids related to him, she said, and looked up to him.

“He didn’t talk at them,” she said. “He talked with them.”

Muhammad said Burks loved the Lord but wasn’t preachy. Through his actions, she said, he walked the walk of righteousness.

“Everyone knew he wasn’t going to take a drink. Everyone knew he wasn’t going to take a smoke,” she said. “He’d get his cup of cranberry juice or Sprite and have a good time. He always made his way to the dance floor to do a hop or step for us.”

Like his other friends, she treasures the personal video messages he sent her, full of updates on his life and reminders of his love.

“I’m just so happy we have those memories to hold onto,” she said. “There’s a collective heartbreak in the city of Dallas right now. I miss my friend.”

Washington Goree also remained close to Burks. And also received those video messages.

He sent her one inviting her to his graduation ceremony. “This has been a heck of a journey,” he told her.

Then another video. He recorded it in his police uniform. “Hey, what’s going on sis?” he says in the recording. “Letting you know I miss you.”

A candlelight vigil at the community center is scheduled Friday evening at the community center, according to social media posts.

Four Dallas police officers have been killed in the line of duty since the July 7, 2016, ambush in downtown Dallas. Ninety-three Dallas officers have died in the line of duty since 1892, according to a police website.

Staff writers Aria Jones, Kelli Smith, Devyani Chhetrl, Everton Bailey Jr. and digital archivist Jennifer Brancato contributed to this report.