"We lost one of the best," in a Southern California shooting on Friday evening, according to a fallen deputy's former partner.
A Riverside County Sheriff's Department deputy, Darnell Calhoun, was killed in the line of duty near Lake Elsinore.
He was 30 years old.
Deputy Calhoun started his law enforcement career with the San Diego Police Department, where he spent two years before transferring to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department in Feb. 2022.
"Everybody liked Darnell. He was always in a positive mood. He was happy. He was joking around, and he would, at the drop of a hat stop what he was doing to help someone else," said SDPD Officer Chad Crenshaw, Deputy Calhoun's former partner.
Officer Crenshaw says beyond being a good deputy, Calhoun was a good father. He says Calhoun was looking forward to the birth of his third child this upcoming April.
"Family came first to him. He bragged about his wife, bragged about his boys," said Crenshaw.
On Saturday, a memorial formed outside of Calhoun Family Texas Barbecue, the restaurant Calhoun's family owns.
"Our community feels so touched and so close, and are grieving with the community at this loss," said one man at the memorial.
On Friday evening, thousands lined the streets as Deputy Calhoun's body was transferred from the hospital to the mortuary.
"It was just a great way to honor Darnell," said Officer Crenshaw.
Officer Crenshaw recalled an incident when a man was experiencing a heart attack while picking up his daughter from school.
Deputy Calhoun reportedly ran to the man and began chest compressions. A firefighter later told Deputy Calhoun that he had saved the man's life.
A Help a Hero campaign has been created in Deputy Calhoun's honor, click here to donate.
