Vigil held for San Bernardino officer shot on patrol

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. (KABC) -- Hundreds turned out Monday for a vigil held in honor of a San Bernardino police officer who was shot while on patrol.

The service for Gabe Garcia, 31, began at about 7 p.m. at the Inland Empire 66ers stadium.

San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said seeing the crowd was very "humbling."

"The community support has been phenomenal," Barguan said.

"I think without faith, this young man would have been dead already, so the story isn't over yet," San Bernardino resident Douglas McCrory said.

On Aug. 22, Garcia and his partner confronted a group of people in the 1900 block of Garner Avenue. A man, identified as Alex Alvarado, suddenly pulled a gun and opened fire, critically injuring Garcia.

Garcia's partner, a trainee on the job for only two months, shot and killed Alvarado.

Alvarado, 38, has had previous run-ins with the law. In 1995, he was sentenced to four years in prison for receiving stolen property with a street gang enhancement. In 2006, he was sentenced to two years in prison for an assault with a deadly weapon and possession of a firearm by an ex-felon.

Garcia remained hospitalized in a medically induced coma, according to the police department's Facebook page.

"There has not been a whole bunch of change in his status, but every little bit of change is important," San Bernardino Police Lt. Rich Lawhead said.