Law enforcement officers remember police officer killed in CDC shooting in Atlanta

DUNWOODY, Ga. (AP) — DeKalb County Police Sgt. Tre Jones knew he would pick David Rose to lead his police academy class on day one, a decision that usually takes four to six weeks to make.

What he didn't know about were Rose's swift moves on the basketball court. But he would soon see them in action at a local church's court while Rose's wife and kids cheered him on from the bleachers.

Weeks after he was killed in the Aug. 8 shooting at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention headquarters in Atlanta, law enforcement colleagues described Rose as a courageous leader who put his family above all else at a memorial service Friday at a church north of Atlanta.

"Without question, he was the finest I ever had the pleasure of training," Jones said. “He was unshakable. His attitude toward the process never wavered. From Day 1 one to graduation, he remained mentally tough, respectful, and fully committed. He welcomed adversity not with resistance, but with that trademark grin.”

Hundreds of law enforcement officers from DeKalb County and the surrounding region filled the church. CDC employees also attended. Local officials and Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp attended. Rose's young daughter leaned on his wife's shoulder with blue bows in her hair and a shirt that said, “My daddy is my hero.”

Patrick Joseph White fired more than 180 shots with a long gun at the CDC headquarters. Investigators learned White wanted to make public his disdain for vaccines.

The shooting reflects the dangers public health leaders have been experiencing around the country since anti-vaccine vitriol spread after the pandemic. Such rhetoric has been amplified as President Donald Trump’s Health Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has repeatedly made false and misleading statements about the safety of immunizations.

Rose, a 33-year-old former U.S. Marine, was shot by White when responding to the shooting. He graduated from the police academy in March.

Attendees throughout the vast sanctuary sniffled as a video played showing photos of Rose with his family and from when he was a child. Interspersed were photos of him training to be a police officer and in military attire.

There were three things Rose regularly talked about, Jones said: Food, his motorcycle and his wife and children, the latter with a wide grin.

DeKalb County police officer Tahlia Cruz said Rose smiled as she recalled the time they played rapper GloRilla too loudly in a van.

She added Rose always encouraged people to “raise their game."

“Off the field, he was quiet, humble and never stopped up smiling,” Cruz said. “He had a way of putting others first, often sacrificing his own comfort so someone else could have theirs. And when you needed guidance, he was the one to turn to.”

When he wasn't with his family, Cruz said Rose found peace cruising down open roads on his motorcycle.

DeKalb interim police Chief Gregory Padrick read Rose's words from his police graduation, where he called on his colleagues to be the person "who runs toward danger when others run away.”

Kramon is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

The mother of DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose is emotional during his funeral service at First Baptist Church Atlanta in Atlanta, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. Rose was killed while responding to a shooting at the CDC. (Arvin Temkar/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

An attendee holds a program for the funeral of DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, who was killed while responding to a shooting at the CDC, at First Baptist Church Atlanta, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025, in Atlanta. (Arvin Temkar/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Law enforcement officers march during the funeral of DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, who was killed while responding to a shooting at the CDC, at First Baptist Church Atlanta, Friday, Aug. 22, 2025, in Atlanta. (Arvin Temkar/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Family members, including DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose's daughter, right, arrive at First Baptist Church Atlanta in Atlanta for his funeral Friday, Aug. 22, 2025. Rose was killed while responding to a shooting at the CDC. (Arvin Temkar/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

WASHINGTON (AP) — It was only a matter of time before Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood hit a grand slam.

But an inside-the-park shot, like the one Wood smashed in Tuesday’s 9-6 victory over the New York Mets?

“I didn’t think it would be like this,” Wood said. “That was a fun way to get it.”

Down 5-0, the Nationals loaded the bases with two outs in the second inning against Mets starter Nolan McLean. Wood hit a first-pitch sweeper to the opposite field, where it glanced off the leaping Nick Morabito’s arm and bounded into center.

“When I saw that, I kind of just knew it was a full-on sprint home,” the 23-year-old Wood said of his 53rd career home run. “That’s probably why my eyes got big.”

Center fielder Tyrone Taylor braced himself before running into the wall before looking at Morabito, who pointed to the carom before giving chase himself.

“He lost track of the baseball,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “He went after and then he didn’t know where the ball was. That’s a tough break there.”

Wood scampered around the bases in 15.15 seconds and slid headfirst across the plate well ahead of the throw for his first career grand slam and 13th homer of the season.

It was the ninth inside-the-park grand slam in the majors since 1994. The previous one was hit by Toronto’s Raimel Tapia on July 22, 2022.

“When they get over the fence, obviously I think James enjoys that more so he doesn’t have to run as hard or as far,” first-year Nationals manager Blake Butera said. “But that was pretty cool. I think everyone was pretty fired up, talking some smack that he can’t hit it over the fence.”

The Nationals have two inside-the-park grand slams since the franchise moved to Washington in 2005. Michael A. Taylor hit the other Sept. 8, 2017, at home against Philadelphia.

Three of the four inside-the-park grand slams this century were hit at Nationals Park. Philadelphia’s Aaron Altherr connected for one at Washington on Sept. 25, 2015.

Now, Wood has joined that small club.

“It’s probably the biggest smile I’ve seen on his face since I’ve gotten to know him,” Butera said.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Washington Nationals' Drew Millas, right, celebrates as the Nationals' James Wood slides into home on a inside the park grand slam home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

New York Mets third baseman Brett Baty (7) watches Washington Nationals' James Wood head home on a inside-the-park grand slam during the second inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

Washington Nationals' Drew Millas, right, celebrates as the Nationals' James Wood slides into home on a inside the park grand slam home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

Washington Nationals' James Wood hits an inside the park grand slam home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets, Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

Washington Nationals' James Wood slides into home as New York Mets catcher Luis Torrens waits for the throw on an inside the park gland slam home run during the second inning of a baseball game Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)