Even the people William H. Torbit Jr. busted praised him.

At a vigil (picture at left by The Sun's Kenneth K. Lam) and in interviews with The Sun's Justin Fenton, those who knew the 33-year-old Central District officer who was mistakenly killed by his own colleagues this weekend called him a tough but fair member of law enforcement.

It was, as Justin wrote, "a moment of unity in a neighborhood where police and residents are often at odds."

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"He would talk to you, find out what your situation was," a woman who would only give her first name, Annette.

"He was that guy who'd walk up and calm the neighborhood down," Detective Michael Miller said. "I still take it as, he's going to come out and say this is all a joke. But it's reality."

As a city native, he wasn't intimidated by the streets and didn't retreat to the suburbs after finishing up work. Instead, he often found himself right back on those same corners, eating at restaurants, driving around to make sure it was safe for kids to play, getting his car washed and talking to residents. Sometimes he'd help serve patrons.

"I said, 'What you doing coming around here after work, somebody's going to kill you, boy,'" recalled friend Sean Rideout, who said he looked up to Torbit and followed him into law enforcement. "He came back because he loved his neighborhood. He loved his people."

Gregory Lassiter, 61, said Torbit could be rough. But he had nothing but praise for the officer.

"He used to throw me down, rough me up a bit, just to try to get me straight," said Lassiter, who says Torbit called him "Merlin" because of his bushy beard. "He stayed on me for a long while, explaining how old I was and how I needed to stop [hustling], and it finally sunk in. He's going to be missed."

A moment of unity indeed. Too bad it was just a moment. And too bad it had to happen under such tragic circumstances.