ATLANTA, Ga. — An aspiring Atlanta Police officer, who was halfway through the police academy, died earlier this month in a motorcycle crash. On Thursday, he will be laid to rest.
Moses Russ died on Sept. 1 when the motorcycle he was riding crashed into car at the intersection of Moreland Avenue and McDonough Boulevard in southeast Atlanta.
A memorial service was held at Victory City Church in Forest Park. The procession is escorting Russ to his final resting place in Mableton.
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Russ, 24, was en route to the Atlanta Police Training Center the morning of the crash. Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum said his department is grieving the loss of a recruit and friend.
“We lost a member of the family ... and there is a family spread throughout Georgia who lost a loved one as well. I join the mayor in asking for everyone’s prayers, for the family and this police department,” said Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum.
Schierbaum said that two employees of the Atlanta Police Training Center, who also were on the way to work, spotted the crash and stopped to render aid to the police recruit and the driver of the vehicle.
The recruit was declared dead after arriving at Grady Memorial Hospital.
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Russ was in his 16th week of training at the police academy. During the summer, he provided security support for police officers at FIFA World Cup events.
Before his journey to become a police officer, he served in the U.S. Coast Guard and worked as a corrections officer.
“The department will mourn, but will continue to serve on his behalf,” Schierbaum said.
The name of driver involved in the crash was not released. Police said she wasn’t injured, and the cause of the accident is under investigation.
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