Baton Rouge police Officer Montrell Jackson opened his heart in a Facebook post on July 8.
“I’m tired physically and emotionally,” Jackson began.
“Disappointed in some family, friends and officers for some reckless comments, but hey, what’s in your heart is in your heart.”
>> 5 things to know about the Baton Rouge police shooting
The new father was reflecting on a tumultuous few weeks in the news. Two of his fellow officers were at the center of much of it, after 37-year-old Alton Sterling was shot as police pinned him down in an effort to arrest him.
Like many police shootings, the incident was caught on camera, and tensions were high in Louisiana.
On Facebook, Jackson attempted to reconcile the anger and strong emotions from his friends and family.
>> What we know about the slain Baton Rouge police officers
“I’ve experienced so much in my short life, and these last 3 days have (tested) me to the core,” Jackson wrote.
“These are trying times. Please don’t let hate infect your heart. This city MUST and WILL get better.”
On Sunday, Jackson was one of several officers who responded to a report of a “suspicious person” armed with a rifle. When they arrived, the officers were ambushed and shot by Gavin Long of Kansas City, Missouri.
Three officers were killed, including Jackson.
In a speech to the nation, President Barack Obama tried to summarize the grief over the officers' death, just as Jackson had a week before.
>> Here's President Obama's statement on the shootings of police in Baton Rouge
"We as a nation have to be loud and clear that nothing justifies violence against law enforcement," Obama said. "Attacks on police are an attack on all of us and the rule of law that makes society possible."
At the close of his own message, Jackson shared a similar sentiment and invited people who saw him on the streets to give him a hug.
“I’m working in these streets, so any protesters, officers, friends, family or whoever, if you see me and need a hug or want to say a prayer. I got you," he wrote.
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