CHICAGO (WGN) — After a year in the making, a statue honoring fallen Chicago police officer Ella French was unveiled on the Southwest Side Sunday.

Inside Wentworth Park in the Garfield Ridge neighborhood, French's mom—Elizabeth French—shed tears after her daughter's patrol partner, Carlos Yanez Jr., helped unveil the life-sized bronze statue of her.

Elizabeth French said her daughter loved animals, especially dogs, and often rescued stranded animals while on duty with the Chicago Police Department. It was that love of four-legged, furry friends that served as inspiration for the statue.

French is depicted kneeling down, smiling while wrapping her arm around her dog, Bella, whom she saved while on duty during the early days of her CPD career.

"I have heard stories about how she would te

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