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by Kevin CodyManhattan Beach Police Officer Donovan Torres, a resource officer at Mira Costa High School, with a degree in education, said he couldn’t adequately paint a picture of Manhattan Beach motor officer Chad Swanson. Torres stood in front of the Manhattan Beach Police and Fire Facility Friday evening, addressing 500 people gathered for a candlelight vigil in memory of Swanson. Two days earlier, on Wednesday, October 4, Swanson was riding his police motorcycle to work on the 405 Freeway when he was hit during a four-car, chain reaction collision. The 13-year MBPD veteran was 35, with three young sons.
“Whatever I say will fall short,” Torres said.
Then he started to paint the picture.
“Chad was a warrior. He looked danger straight in the eye, and flipped it off. He was widely read. He was the smartest guy in the room, and he was the life of the party.”
“Chad was the ‘breaker’ on our SWAT team. The ‘breaker’ is the guy who gets access for the rest of us. His preferred tool was the battering ram. He always succeeded on the first, or maybe second try. He didn’t want us standing in front of that door longer than necessary. The ram personified Chad.”
“Hailey,” Torres said, addressing Swanson’s wife, “we promise you your sons, Jaimson, Declan and Easton, will know their father. We will keep Chad alive for them.”
Manhattan Beach Officer Kyle McCammon added more details to the picture of Swanson, beginning with, “I should be wearing cowboy boots and a cowboy shirt. Or maybe no shirt.”
Swanson was among the country music fans wounded during the mass shooting that killed 60 at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival in Las Vegas in 2017. He was subsequently honored for applying tourniquets to other victims, and carrying them to safety before having his own wounds tended to.
Captain Andrew Enriquez recalled Swanson, who joined the department at the minimum age of 21, was “mature beyond his years.
“We were on patrol together when he made a mistake during a felony stop. I was pissed. He apologized. What could I do? We were on the SWAT team together. We shared birthdays, barbecues, and gender reveal parties. We shared fun, and mourned losses together. He gave me a book on breathing. He never asked for recognition.”
Like Torres, Enriquez assured Hailey and the couple’s three sons, “Chad won’t be forgotten. He’ll live on through his stories for generations.”
“100 percent,” Torres added, repeating Swanson’s signature signoff.
A bagpiper from the Los Angeles Police Department Emerald Society Pipes and Drums led the vigilers from the Civic Center Plaza down to the pier. Blue lights lined the pier. A spotlight lit an American flag suspended high overhead by a hook and ladder fire truck.
Police Chief Rachel Johnson delivered the closing comments as the bagpiper marched to the end of the pier.
“We try to hire the best. We did that when we hired Chad,” the Chief said.
The Manhattan Beach Police Officers’ Association (MBPOA) has created a donation fund for the Swanson family via the Peace Officers Research Association of California (PORAC) Fund a Hero Program. ER
