Family, Friends & Fellow Officers Remember...

Remembering you and your sacrifice on this day. May God bless you, Officer Hettinger and your respective families.

Jack Hannah
Citizen

March 9, 2009

Your heroism and service is honored today, the 46th anniversary of your death. Your memory lives and you continue to inspire. Thank you for your service. My cherished son Larry Lasater was a fellow police officer who was murdered in the the line of duty on April 24, 2005 while serving as a Pittsburg, CA police officer.

Time never diminishes respect. Your memory will always be honored and revered. Like many others, I first learned about you and your brutal and senseless murder by reading The Onion Field. In the mid-seventies, I became a correctional officer at San Quentin and my first assigment was to the West Block, which at that time was the designated honor block. I was astonished to learn that Gregory Powell was housed in that unit and was sickened when he approached me introducing himself as one of the defendants in the Onion Field case. I will never forget his almost fawning attitude reveling in what he perceived for himself as his celebrity image resulting from the book and film. I was even more astonished as a "fish" officer when I learned that he was one of three inmates in the whole insitution that did not have to be locked up for the 4:00 count due to his prison job. I still find that incredible. I left S.Q. after two years and went to law school and never saw Gregory Powell again, but I hope he is never paroled.

Rest In Peace, Ian. Your life and death has had a profound impact on many lives.

Phyllis Loya

Phyllis Loya
mother of fallen officer Larry Lasater

March 8, 2009

Your story has touched the hearts of many people.You were a truly brave man,Officer Campbell.It's very apparent you would have went on to do many good deeds.Go with God,and rest in peace.

Private Citizen Carmela Harris

March 8, 2009

You are remembered.

Shannon

March 7, 2009

We have never forgotten. Your story and tragic death have undoubtedly saved many officers. May you rest in peace Brother.

AZ Narc

March 5, 2009

Officer Campbell,

The anniversary of your death is a little over a week away. I came here today to honor you and the sacrifice you made for the people of Los Angeles and the State of California all those years ago in that onion field in Bakersfield.

I've thought of you often and what you went through since reading your story in college in the early 1990's. I lived just north of Bakersfield for approximately 10 years and whenever I drove through the area, my thoughts were of you and Officer Hettinger. The smell of the onions was alway profound and it instantly took me back to what you two went through. You are not forgotten. I will never forget.

Officer Hettinger, I will never judge you for what happened in that onion field on that fateful night your partner was killed. I can't imagine the hell you witnessed. I hope you have finally found your peace, brother. Rest easy.

Senior Officer J. Anthony Sandoval
Kingsville Police Department

March 1, 2009

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE, REST IN PEACE.

N.J. TROOPER
NEW JERSEY STATE POLICE

February 3, 2009

Your were a great man and you are sorely missed! God bless your soul and rest in peace!

David

January 30, 2009

Officer Campbell will always be remembered.

Semper Fi

R/Sgt Patrick A. Petre #2519
Monteey Park, Ca PD
USMC 1973-1993

Reserve Sgt Patrick A. Petre #2519
MOnterey Park PD

January 9, 2009

It is so good to finally be able to put a face to the name of this fine young man. I had searched the net many times for a photo of him and of Karl. I lived in Los Angeles in '63, and read "Onion" many years ago and again just last month.... I never forgot the case or the people involved. I hope Ian and Karl found the peace in death they longed for in life.

Angel D.
Citizen

January 9, 2009

My dad was a 35 year cop, a WWII vet, and a Scot. He was always a quiet sort. Never was boastful or seemed to laugh. He passed away back in 1990. And as is universaly the case, I was left trying to further understand this man who was my father, even though hardly a day passed while he was alive that we didn't exchange some sort of conversation. After reading "Onion Field", I feel that I know my dad all the more. Thanks Ian & Karl. To me, you guys are part of the family.

Todd

December 12, 2008

I knew his brother in law Richard. I remember him talking of the pain that this tragedy caused the entire family. He also always spoke with such pride at how strong Ian's girls were. It is such a waste that such a good man was taken away at such an early age. Ian you and your family are always in my thoughts and prayers.

Anonymous

November 6, 2008

RIP.You are not forgotten.

Anonymous

November 3, 2008

I would just like to say that it is truly heartwarming to know that Ian is still remembered today and that the story has touched/saved so many.

I just wanted to say thankyou, as this still affects my mother and aunt every day.

Michelle
would be grand daughter

September 11, 2008

Always in the heart and on the minds of many law enforcement officers and citizens. May you and your wife continue to rest in the loving arms of our Heavenly Father. May God bless and watch over your family.

Brandon J. Sullivan
Detroit PD - Retired.

Anonymous

August 24, 2008

I have read The Onion Field many many times and it continues to be my very favorite book. I have the movie also and will forever admire both Ian and Karl. I am not a fellow officer;just someone who remembers the date most every March and visualize what it must have been like. Thank you for letting me reflect.

Roberta A. Eller
My favorite book

August 13, 2008

I have read the story of this horrific incident. It makes me very sad to do so. But I do it because I don't ever want the bravery, honor and heroism exhibited by these two officers to ever become dull in my memory. Rest in peace my Brothers. Semper Fi.

AZ Narc

August 7, 2008

To the family and friends of Ian Campbell,

I am myself a player of the bagpipes and reading about Ian Campbell in "The Onion Field" in the 1970s was a major inspiration for me to learn this instrument. I even sported the Campbell tartan for some years as a tribute. I am a writer and piper still and helped get Ian Campbell listed on the Who's Who in Bagpiping website. I've met pipers who won the Ian Campbell Memorial trophy at past Scottish games in Los Angeles (a competition that sadly seems to have elapsed). I would very much like to write a short profile of Officer Campbell and discuss his career and legacy as a Highland bagpiper for "The Piping Times", the official magazine of the College of Piping in Scotland. This publication has served to document the world of piping for over 50 years and it's time that Ian Campbell be recognized in its pages for his influence. To do so, however, I need the input from those who knew him best and will also need to share photographs that must reside in the possession of his family.

If this is of interest to you, please contact me via email at the address below. I am based in Austin, Texas. KevinhendryxATmail.utexas.edu I look forward to any contact and hope with your help to bring Ian's musical legacy to wider attention and help inspire others as I was inspired. Thank you and God bless.

Kevin Hendryx
Bagpiper

July 7, 2008

I don't have to watch the movie. I have never forgotten that night. Born and raised in the City of Angels, my parents often took me to Hollywood for a movie and a hot fudge sundae at CC Browns. I still wonder if we ever crossed paths there. I was seven years old when your watch ended. I still remember watching KABC News Anchor Baxter Ward tell your story and show the footage of where you and Hettinger were abducted and where you were slain. I remember reading everything I could about the case in the Los Angeles Times. Seven year olds read newspapers back then. I remember it like I remember the Kennedy assasination eight months later.

I eventually did read the book, watch the movie, and still remember your partners guilt at surviving. I remember when he was elected to the Kern County Board of Supervisors and served there, as he had at LAPD, with distinction. I remember your needless death because Powell was too stupid to know that our "Little Lindberg" law did not mean the death penalty.

I remember discussing your case with department veterans when I went through arrest and control school. I remember the irony that I had to distribute Smith's photograph to our officers when he was at large where I worked in Van Nuys Division. I remember not being able to stop thinking about the case while watching one of my children play in a soccer tournament in Bakersfield and wondering how close was I to the murder scene. I remember it all. It is a part of me like breathing. I will carry your memory to the end of my days and never forget the sacrifices you made so that I and so many others would be safe now. God bless you and keep you and Karl Hettinger.

James M. Grant, Crime Analyst II
Los Angeles Police Department

June 4, 2008

To Ian and His Family:

Virtually every year my wife and I attend the National Police Officers Memorial Week in Washington, D.C. This year was no different. And, each year I look up Ian's name and visit the location where he is memorialized on the wall. His life and the senseless nature of his death have touched me forever.

I say s prayer for him and for his loved ones who still mourn his loss. God be with you.

David Felix, Deputy Director
Arizona Dept of Public Safety

May 25, 2008

Just today I was reminded by a customer that in June of 1967 I received from Ian's mother the Ian Campbell Memorial Trophy for Novice Piping at the USS Highland Games in Santa Monica. It was a proud day for me.

It still sits on my shelf where I see it every day, my own memorial to a brave young man who was taken too soon.

Your memory lives on.
Semper Fi

Iain Sherwood
Piper

May 19, 2008

After reading the onion field, this is how i learned about the awful night. office campbell and his partner were doing their job to protect us from individuals who do not belong in our society. even though more than 40 years hve passed, office Ian Campbell will never be forgotten by me. I know God is watching over him.

Andrew Butzko USAF retired

May 1, 2008

Once again I have watched The Onion Field and cried over the senseless loss of that horrible night. As a daughter of police officers I am thankful I was never awakened in the night by the police chaplin. You served with honor and your family deserves only the utmost respect. Karl did what anyone would have done and suffered for it for the rest of his life. Both of you and your familes remain in my prayers-may God bless your familes and keep them close.

Jayme M.

April 14, 2008

Let none of us forget Officer Carl Hettinger and the sacrifices he made and the misery he endured as a result of this terrible event. Like Ian Campbell, Carl Hettinger was a hero as well. God bless both of these fine men and may they rest in peace.

Anonymous

April 6, 2008

May God continue to keep you safe as well as your partner Karl Hettinger. Both of you are heroes and never to be forgotten.

God bless you.

April 1, 2008