Slain deputy devoted life to Sikh faith, serving others

Sandeep Dhaliwal carried a badge and a gun while devoting his life to a faith that teaches love and peace.

Dhaliwal, who was fatally shot from behind during a traffic stop Friday, was the first Sikh sheriff’s deputy on a force that covers an area including the nation’s fourth largest city of Houston. Four years ago he won an accommodation to wear his turban and a beard while patrolling. Friends said Dhaliwal, 42, was an example of how love-inspired service to others can tear down walls of distrust and misunderstanding.

“He was just a gem of a person. He was a beautiful soul,” Simran Jeet Singh, a senior religion fellow at the New York-based Sikh Coalition, said Saturday.

Robert Solis, who has an extensive criminal history, has been charged with capital murder in Dhaliwal’s killing. Solis, 47, was denied bond at a hearing early Saturday. Authorities haven’t speculated as to Solis’ motive or suggested that it was a hate crime. Solis was wanted on a warrant for violating parole, and authorities said Saturday that they had received “credible information” that he might have a mental illness or intellectual disability and ordered an evaluation. The killing came at a time when the U.S. has seen a string a mass shootings, stoking the debate over the nation’s gun laws.

Some friends of Dhaliwal said his life showed how the presence of multiple cultures and faiths can enrich the country.

“It’s such a powerful message to send to the community that a man in a turban and beard is just as much American as you,” said Simran Jeet Singh.