Michael Briggs Remembered At Manchester Memorial Service

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• View an audio slideshow by Cheryl Senter of the procession

The service came after a three mile procession though the streets of Manchester……..Michael Briggs' coffin passed by city hall, under a large American flag draped from fire truck ladders at Manchester police headquarters, and past the Valley Street Jail. The procession included a police cruiser bearing Briggs's patrol bicycle, and a riderless horse -- the traditional symbol of a fallen officer……..It also featured thousands of law enforcement personnel…… They traveled the procession route by foot, on motorcycles, bicycles and on horseback before making their way to Merchants auto stadium, where Briggs flag-draped coffin was placed near home plate……….
Speakers celebrated Briggs as a valued colleague, a proud marine and loving father, brother and son……. Governor John Lynch hailed Briggs as a brave protector of others, and a youth baseball coach……Lynch told the capacity crowd that an attack on any member of law enforcement as an attack on us all.

Mitchell Briggs, 8, son of slain officer Michael Briggs, looks out the limousine window during the procession to the memorial service.(Cheryl Senter, NHPR)

"We are united in grief and yes in anger at this senseless crime….This tragedy tears at the very fabric of our community and it tugs at the very core of our hearts."

Manchester Mayor Frank Guinta said Briggs' shooting, which came 15 minutes before the end of his Monday night shift, represented the very worst of a great city.

"His death was tragic, it was brutal, it was everything that is wrong with our society today. But it was not without purpose and we will remember it."

People who knew Briggs the best -- his family and patrol partners -- agreed that Briggs will be impossible to forget…….His sisters recounted a devoted family man, who loved to hunt and fish, but who had two left feet on the dance floor……Briggs's police colleges, like Officer John Breckenridge, described Briggs as a cop with who brought both great compassion and great strength to hard job.

"To me, Mike Briggs in one thing -- solid. He's the kind of guy that all of us want to be and never quite get there…..He treated people fairly, with dignity and respect……Mike was also one of the toughest guys I ever met. If a person needed to be listened to, he'd listen. If a person needed a swift kick in the ass, he'd get that too."

The memorial ended with traditional pipes and drums………and a flyover by a pair of police helicopters………A procession then drove through Concord to Epsom, where Michael Briggs was buried at the New Rye Cemetery.