R E S O L U T I O N
 1-1           WHEREAS, Deputy Keith George Ruiz of the Travis County
 1-2     Sheriff's Office was killed in the line of duty on February 15,
 1-3     2001, at the age of 36, and we join his family and friends in
 1-4     mourning their tragic loss; and
 1-5           WHEREAS, A valued member of the Travis County SWAT team,
 1-6     Deputy Ruiz was helping his fellow officers on the SWAT and
 1-7     Narcotics Task Force to execute a narcotics search warrant at the
 1-8     time of his death; and
 1-9           WHEREAS, Born May 2, 1964, Deputy Ruiz earned a bachelor of
1-10     science degree in criminal justice from Southwest Texas State
1-11     University, with a major in law enforcement and a minor in
1-12     sociology; continuing his education, this esteemed public servant
1-13     attained his advanced peace officer certification on February 25,
1-14     2000; and
1-15           WHEREAS, In 1988, Deputy Ruiz joined the Travis County
1-16     Sheriff's Office and was assigned to the Corrections Bureau at the
1-17     Travis County Jail; two years later he transferred to Law
1-18     Enforcement, where he served with distinction for five years before
1-19     his transfer to the Tactical Unit in 1995; and
1-20           WHEREAS, In his years with the Sheriff's Office, Deputy Ruiz
1-21     had a distinguished peacekeeping career, earning  eight letters of
1-22     commendation and 11 letters of appreciation, as well as nomination
1-23     for a 2000 Commendation Bar; and
1-24           WHEREAS, In his leisure time, this avid sportsman made
 2-1     spending time with his family a priority in his life, serving as
 2-2     his sons' T-ball and baseball coach for a decade and regularly
 2-3     planning family outings with his loved ones; and
 2-4           WHEREAS, Those who serve in the field of law enforcement are
 2-5     among the most dedicated of all public servants, for they realize
 2-6     that although their efforts may place them in exceptional physical
 2-7     peril, that level of personal risk is necessary to ensure the
 2-8     public's welfare; and
 2-9           WHEREAS, Deputy Ruiz exemplifies the spirit of self-sacrifice
2-10     that is at the core of every peace officer's pledge to provide for
2-11     the public safety of everyone in the community; although his life
2-12     has been cut tragically short, his memory will live on in the
2-13     hearts and minds of the many people whose lives he touched; now,
2-14     therefore, be it
2-15           RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas
2-16     Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Deputy Keith George
2-17     Ruiz and extend sincere sympathy to the members of the family he
2-18     held so dear:  to his beloved wife, Bernadette Ortiz Ruiz and sons,
2-19     Matthew Anthony, Alexander Jesse, and Joshua Keith Ruiz; to his
2-20     parents, George and Mary Ruiz; to his brother and sister-in-law,
2-21     Kenneth and Cathy Ruiz; to his sister and brother-in-law, Shirley
2-22     and Marshall Littleton; and to his other relatives and many
2-23     friends; and, be it further
 3-1           RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
 3-2     prepared for the members of his family and that when the Texas
 3-3     House of Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of
 3-4     Travis County Sheriff's Deputy Keith George Ruiz.
                                                                       Maxey
                                                                     Kitchen
                                                                       Dukes
                                                                        Keel
                                                                    Naishtat
         Laney                   Goodman                  Merritt
         Alexander               Goolsby                  Miller
         Allen                   Gray                     Moreno of Harris
         Averitt                 Green                    Moreno of El Paso
         Bailey                  Grusendorf               Morrison
         Berman                  Gutierrez                Mowery
         Bonnen                  Haggerty                 Naishtat
         Bosse                   Hamric                   Najera
         Brimer                  Hardcastle               Nixon
         Brown of Kaufman        Hartnett                 Noriega
         Brown of Brazos         Hawley                   Oliveira
         Burnam                  Heflin                   Olivo
         Callegari               Hilbert                  Pickett
         Capelo                  Hilderbran               Pitts
         Carter                  Hill                     Puente
         Chavez                  Hinojosa                 Ramsay
         Chisum                  Hochberg                 Rangel
         Christian               Hodge                    Raymond
         Clark                   Homer                    Reyna of Bexar
         Coleman                 Hope                     Reyna of Dallas
         Cook                    Hopson                   Ritter
         Corte                   Howard                   Sadler
         Counts                  Hunter                   Salinas
         Crabb                   Hupp                     Seaman
         Craddick                Isett                    Shields
         Crownover               Janek                    Smith
         Danburg                 Jones of Lubbock         Smithee
         Davis of Harris         Jones of Bexar           Solis
         Davis of Dallas         Jones of Dallas          Solomons
         Delisi                  Junell                   Swinford
         Denny                   Keel                     Talton
         Deshotel                Keffer                   Telford
         Driver                  King of Parker           Thompson
         Dukes                   King of Uvalde           Tillery
         Dunnam                  Kitchen                  Truitt
         Dutton                  Kolkhorst                Turner of Coleman
         Edwards                 Krusee                   Turner of Harris
         Ehrhardt                Kuempel                  Uher
         Eiland                  Lewis of Tarrant         Uresti
         Elkins                  Lewis of Orange          Villarreal
         Ellis                   Longoria                 Walker
         Farabee                 Luna                     West
         Farrar                  McCall                   Williams
         Flores                  McClendon                Wilson
         Gallego                 McReynolds               Wise
         Garcia                  Madden                   Wohlgemuth
         George                  Marchant                 Wolens
         Geren                   Martinez Fischer         Woolley
         Giddings                Maxey                    Yarbrough
         Glaze                   Menendez                 Zbranek
                                             _______________________________
                                                   Speaker of the House
               I certify that H.R. No. 312 was unanimously adopted by a
         rising vote of the House on February 21, 2001.
                                             _______________________________
                                                 Chief Clerk of the House