Memorial held for deputy U.S. marshal killed in Charlotte, N.C.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland on Monday said at the memorial service in Charlotte that Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks would always be remembered as a hero by the law enforcement community. Last month, Weeks was working with the U.S. Marshals Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force to execute an arrest warrant for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, according to an earlier statement by the Marshals Service. A shootout erupted during the arrest, and gunfire killed Weeks and three other law enforcement officers.

How long had he been with the marshals? Weeks had served with the U.S. Marshals for 13 years. According to Garland, he began his time in the U.S. Marshals as a guard for a superior court judge in Washington, D.C. “That judge recounted that Tommy always had a smile on his face—the biggest smile,” Garland said. Weeks transferred to North Carolina in 2014. Before working with the Marshals Service, he worked with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. He leaves behind a wife and four children.

Dig deeper: Read Christina Grube’s report in The Sift from the day after last month’s shootout.