With an Irish flag held high and waving in the breeze, a small group of friends and family of Andrew James Hanlon walked to Unger Funeral Chapel on Saturday to attend a memorial service for the slain Irishman.


Hanlon, 20, was shot and killed June 30 by Silverton Police Officer Tony Gonzalez, who was responding to a reported burglary in progress.

About 20 people, including Hanlon's mother Dorothea Carroll, who arrived in Oregon on Thursday, attended the service.

"It was small, quiet and private, which is what the family wanted," said Ariel Burton, a close friend of Hanlon's. "There were some people we knew there and a few that we didn't."

Burton said it was a closed-casket service with Father William Hammelman of St. Paul Catholic Church in Silverton officiating. Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven" played, and a close friend of the family's from Ireland shared a few words about Hanlon.

After the service, Carroll came outside briefly to speak with friends and community members who have offered their support.

"He was a bright, delightful young man," said Candy Carey, a Silverton resident and friend of the family, "the kind that you meet and it makes you smile right away. He was truly a pleasant presence in our lives."

Authorities have released few details about the shooting, including whether Hanlon was armed. Family and friends have rallied to find answers. Many say they cannot fathom what happened that night that could justify his death.

"He was an angel in so many ways," Burton said. "He would call me his angel, but he saved me in more ways than I ever saved him."

The shooting is being investigated by the multi-agency Marion County Homicide Assault Response Team, and its findings will be reviewed by the district attorney's office. A grand jury is expected to be convened after the investigation is concluded, the district attorney's office said.

A memorial for Hanlon lies near Oak and Mill streets, where the shooting occurred. Jessica Blade, a close friend of Hanlon's, said she has come to the memorial every night to light candles. Carroll and other family members joined friends about 11 p.m. Friday for a candlelight vigil at the memorial. Carroll flew in Thursday to claim her son's body and to speak with the district attorney's office, hoping to get some answers about her son's death. The family has chosen to refrain from speaking to the press and have referred all media inquiries to the Portland law firm O'Donnell, Clark & Crew.

Carey said the family was disappointed at the lack of information they were provided during a meeting Friday with Marion County District Attorney Walt Beglau.

"For the family to travel all the way here to bring their son home and be told nothing is terrible," Carey said.

She also said the family was upset with the statement released by the Silverton Police Officers' Association, in which it publicly supported Gonzalez.

"We're very concerned about the fact that the Silverton Police, city administration and the district attorney's office is giving out no information whatsoever," Carey said. "We give police special privileges and rights. And with those come a tremendous responsibility to the people who gave them those rights and pay their salaries. We deserve to know what happened."

Marion County Deputy District Attorney said last week that he was hopeful that the investigation could be wrapped up soon. But until the grand jury has a chance to review the case, information about the shooting would not be released to the public. This is standard review given all officer-involved shootings in Marion County.

Cate Tennyson, a Silverton resident and friend of the family, said Carroll worries that once the media frenzy dies down, her son's memory will fade away, along with the investigation.

"Their biggest concern is that once they leave and take Andrew's body back to Ireland he will be forgotten, the case will be forgotten" Tennyson said. "They don't want to be the story. They still want answers. They want to know why Andrew was taken from them."