Task force honors Officer Ellis, hopes to stop crime

RICHMOND, Ky. (WTVQ) – A Richmond man is hoping to inspire change in his community following the shooting death of a city police officer who was investigating a reported robbery.

David Gannon, president of the Downtown Richmond Associated, started a task force in honor of Officer Daniel Ellis to help other law enforcement officers.

Gannon’s wife was the victim of the reported attempted robbery that Officer Ellis was investigating when he was shot. Officer Ellis later died from those injuries.

Gannon says in the days after Officer Ellis’ death, he was angry and frustrated. He wanted to do something but wasn’t sure what. After talking with people in the community he came up with the Ellis Coalition Task Force.

He hopes with the Ellis Coalition there can be more funding for officers and some state laws can be changed to support law enforcement and hopefully stop violence.

But he says it is going to take the entire community working together for something to happen.

“Our goal is just to present information, provide information that we come up with,” said Gannon. “You look at it, you make the decision and then you decide: should I make a call? Is this right? If it’s not, do I want this in my community? And if it’s not, how do I fix it?”

The task force is still in the early stages but it hopes to share information online. The group has started a Facebook page.