One-year anniversary of Tampa Police officers murders stirs memories for colleagues

TAMPA - June 29, 2010, is a day I can't forget, watching the frantic, frightening scene out along 50th street in Tampa after in the awful hours after Officers David Curtis and Jeffery Kocab were gun down during a traffic stop. It's a day Officer Bill Logan can't forget, either.

"It's very somber," he said "But every day, it gets a little better."

Officer Logan, a member of Squad 306, was one of the first on the scene on the morning that led to the mourning of two lost colleagues.

"I can't believe it's been a year," said Logan, who has remained in that squad -- along with the other members who stuck together as a unit following the tragedy, and closed ranks as the 365 days ticked away... to today.

"A year has come and gone so quickly," he added, "but it's adding more to the healing process to get through this."

While officer Logan remains with the still- intact unit, he and his colleagues remember today -- not just with the newly-etched name on the police memorial at the downtown TPD HQ -- but also in the "Hallway of Heroes" memorial, constructed at Squad 306's District 3 home.

"A lot of time and effort went into it," said Detective Steve Power, who helped organize the project, with volunteers and donations and dedication to the memory of the fallen officers. "And it's going to be a reminder -- every time these officers go into roll call -- of what we face."

Power told us this is one "small thing" he could do to help even as today's anniversary picks at the almost scabbed-over emotional scars.

"It doesn't go away," he said, with a catch in his voice. "It just doesn't go away."