EDGEWOOD, Texas — After the City of Edgewood police chief passed away earlier this week, the department has released a statement.
The Van Zandt County Pct. 4 Constable's Office confirmed Edgewood Chief of Police David Hammonds died while on duty.
In a statement, Edgewood Police Department Lieutenant Robert Dearing said the City of Edgewood suffered a tragic loss.
Hammonds began his career in April 1969 as a Texas State Trooper after he graduated from the Texas Department of Public Safety Academy. He worked as an undercover fighter of drugs in Texas in the Highway Patrol and License & Weight and Narcotics divisions.
Hammonds retired from DPS to work at the District Attorney's Office as an investigator in Van Zandt County. Later, he applied for Chief at the City of Canton and was hired, the statement said.
As chief at the Canton Police Department, Hammonds oversaw the creation of a narcotics division and a Tactical Team. The divison and team were successful and earned the respect of neighboring agencies.
Hammond briefly served in Grand Slaine before applying to be chief in Edgewood, where he served two years. Hammonds resigned from his position to rub to become the Sheriff of Van Zandt County.
After Hammonds lost his bid to the current sheriff, he worked in Grand Saline and Log Cabin before he accepted a postiion as a Special Ranger for the DPS.
In 2015, Hammonds returned to the City of Edgewood after applying for the Chief's postion. As Chief, he began to rebuild and restructure the police department. He worked hard to get funding to purchase equipment for the department to better serve the citizens of Edgewood, according to the statement.
The statement said Hammonds hired officers that also shared his philosophy of community commitment. He believed each of his officer’s were a part of his family and treated each as a son or daughter.
According to the statement, his philosophy in life was God-Family-Service. He was known to many as a trooper, investigator, chief, coach, friend, confidant, counselor, mentor, role model, husband and father describe his life but husband and father made him proudest.
Hammonds is remembered for being present throughout the community and was always ready to console or counsel someone in need or crack a joke if the situation called, the statement said.
The Van Police Department released a statement through a Facebook post in regards to Hammond's death:
"The Van Police Department would like to extend our condolences to the Hammonds family. Nancy, David was one of a kind! Our prayers go to the Hammonds family, the Edgewood Police Department and the citizens," the statement read.
CBS19 will update this article with more information as it becomes available.