Thomas Wood Murder Case

On the evening of October twenty-third, 2006 officer Thomas Wood was the victim of a fatal police shooting. Officer Wood had served the Maywood Police Department for 12 years. He also served as a reserve police officer with the Schiller Park Police Department for three years while serving as a part-time officer with Stone Park Police Department for two years. Reports were given that Officer Wood was shot after notifying dispatchers that a drug trafficking call he investigated was unfounded. A man found him slumped over in his car and called 911. Wood was found in his marked vehicle with his drivers side window open. It appeared that he was shot six times in the head and once in the chest. His dog Daro was also in the car but was unharmed
in the shooting. It was said to resemble an execution style shooting. The police officers also found bullet holes in a white parked car nearby. He was also the departments first officer to be killed in the line of duty. Reports from the neighborhood where Officer Wood was shot said the cops went a little overboard with the man and his family who called the police.
They knocked his door down and had flashlights shining all over his house and his family asking if they saw anything. Officer Wood left behind a wife, 2 children, 3 step children, a father and a brother. His wife was reported to say that she will never find someone like that again, that he cherished her, and she was his queen. She wants to let the people who did this know that they left a large young family alone. They have held a man in questioning on 1 million dollar bond. Terry Gilford was described as being a man of interest in Officer Woods shooting. He is a known felon. He was brought into court for unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, possession of a stolen firearm and possession of a controlled substance. He has only been held on questioning and not charged with the murder of Officer Wood. I feel bad for the department that is dealing with this loss. For them to be so good for so many years before having anything happen on the job. Especially in Maywood where crime is on the rise. Gang problems are slowing going up in the area as more and more gangs are moving into the area. I feel bad for all the cops on the force. I know its probably is a horrible time for
them. I think this is a horrible story to have to hear. Especially going into the police force. It makes you really think. Here this officer was just sitting in his car reporting a clear report and these gang members or whatever they were come out of nowhere and just shoot this car up for nothing. He wasn't busting them, he wasn't reporting anything they were doing, was just in his car minding his own business. It makes you have to be on edge as a officer. You can never really think your safe being a officer like you would think you would be. Maybe if it was an unidentified police car maybe the outcome of this might have been differently but for them gang members to know that it's a police car probably gave them more of a want to shoot the car. Which brings me to think with all the songs out there with Cop Killers and F--- the Police it makes you think if shooting cops is a game to these criminals. I kind of get sick to my stomach when I hear these bands now a days covering these songs thinking its cool and getting these young kids thinking the same thing. However it's the police saving these people from anything bad happening to them, and keeping things bad from happening to them. This story is horrible for what it is but it makes it seem even worse that this happened to someone who was working how many jobs to try to provide for a large family. In conclusion, the only thing I can hope and prey for is that when I become a cop that nothing like this ever happens to me or someone I know on the force. A Police force is like a second family to many of the people involved on it and I would hate to lose someone that I know and care about to something petty and stupid like a gang shooting. Especially when it's in a circumstance of a execution like this story.