Keith Palmer, Constable Killed in London Attack and ‘No. 1 Daddy,’ Is Mourned<br />By DAN BILEFSKYAPRIL 10, 2017<br />LONDON — Tens of thousands of mourners, including police officers from every force in Britain, lined the route to Southwark Cathedral on Monday<br />to mark the funeral service of Keith Palmer, the police constable who was stabbed to death in the terrorist attack outside Parliament.<br />About 50,000 people and an estimated 5,000 police officers, some wearing white gloves<br />and displaying service medals on their lapels, stood on the streets as the funeral cortege slowly made its way from the Palace of Westminister to Southwark Cathedral for a full police funeral service.<br />Throughout the day, colleagues praised the heroism of Mr. Palmer — a member of the Parliamentary<br />and Diplomatic Protection Command, with 15 years of service — who had stood in the path of the terrorist.<br />During last month’s attack, the sight of Mr. Palmer wounded on the cobbled courtyard in front of Parliament became a powerful symbol of an assault at the heart of British democracy<br />that convulsed the country and spurred debate over whether security at Parliament needed to be increased.<br />Mr. Palmer, 48, was unarmed and guarding the houses of Parliament on March 22 when Khalid Masood, a British-born man with a history of violence, suddenly charged toward him<br />and fatally stabbed him after driving a car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge.<br />"As a police officer, I never came across someone who worked as hard as Keith did." During<br />last month’s terrorist attack, more than 50 people were injured and five people died.
