A gay deputy sheriff who died from coronavirus was a hero who guarded his local LGBT+ venues and pushed for diversity in the police.
Deputy Shannon Bennett served the Broward County Sheriff’s Office for 12 years. He worked in Wilton Manors, a city in Florida close to the LGBT+ resort of Fort Lauderdale.
And friends say that after the shooting at LGBT nightclub Pulse in nearby Orlando, he would park his patrol car outside venues in Wilton Manors to show they were protected.