His close friends and familyknew him as “Spanky.” The die-hard Notre Dame fan. The loving father of three. The dedicated cop.
Maryland Transportation Authority Police Cpl. Courtney Brooks, 40, was laid to rest Monday at the Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens in Timonium, alongside other officers whose lives were cut short in the line of duty.
“For 13 years he worked to protect the lives of Marylanders, and for 13 years his family supported him in this noble calling,” Gov. Martin O?Malley said at Brooks? funeral. “Corporal Brooks was a father, a fiance, a friend, a son, a brother, a grandson and a hero. And while we can never repay what Corporal Brooks and his family have done for all of us, we can say that we will continue his selfless mission to help others, to defend the weak and to protect the people. And it is in love and memory of him that we do this.”
About 2,000 people ? including many law enforcement officers who stood at attention outside the cathedral -? attended Brooks? funeral at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen on North Charles Street in Baltimore.
Brooks was fatally hit at around 11:20 p.m. New Year?s Eve while working a traffic detail on Interstate 95 in southwest Baltimore. The owner of the vehicle, Kerri King, 35, of Elkton, was arrested last week on an open warrant for failing to appear for a drunken-driving case but has not been charged in connection with Brooks? death. Authorities are trying to determine whether she was driving the vehicle.
Brooks, who lived in Hampstead in Carroll County, left behind his fiancee, Susan Geisler, whom he planned to marry on May 17, and his three children, Casey, 17, Blake, 4, and Raigen, 2.
Brooks? family said the officer?s true passion was photography and rooting for the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.
“His collection of Notre Dame memorabilia would rival most, particularly when you throw in his underwear with leprechauns and green clovers all overthem,” said his cousin, Erin Brooks. “Anyone who knew him knows that he could not sit still for more than a few seconds. He was a bundle of energy looking for the next thing to get into. He played with his kids as if he one of them, but when it was time to be Dad, he was Dad.”
MdTA Police Chief Marcus Brown told mourners he knows Brooks would be proud of the job his fellow officers have done with his case: How they worked to save his life on the side of the road and how they?re tirelessly investigating the circumstances of his death.
“Courtney loved being a cop,” he said.
