They came, they mourned, they wept yesterday in a small Roxbury chapel for Gail Arlene Miles, daughter, friend, and police trailblazer who was found slain in her home more than a week ago.
One by one they stood and shared their stories of Miles, a lifelong Roxbury resident known as generous, funny, and passionate about shoes, people, and animals.
Miles made state history in 1984 as the first African-American officer in the Watertown Police Department, where she championed women and minorities.
She sued the department in 2000, accusing it of discrimination. She received a $150,000 out-of-court settlement a year later. The settlement contained a stipulation that the Watertown police complete a mandatory officer training program aimed at preventing sexual and racial harassment.
“Gail had a strong passion for fighting back and being fearless,’’ said Melonie Griffiths, who said she worked with Miles recently on tenants rights issues for City Life/Vida Urbana, a grass-roots community organization.
Lieutenant Christopher M. Munger of the Watertown department, who attended police academy with Miles and worked with her throughout most of her police career, said Miles was on the force for about 20 years and retired about eight years ago after suffering an injury on the job.
“She’s just a very outgoing person,’’ said Munger. “If you met her, you would never forget her.’’
The body of Miles, 60, was discovered by her mother, Marilyn Miles, Dec. 3 in the victim’s home on Wardman Road. Boston police homicide detectives are investigating the death. By yesterday, they had no new leads.
Some family and friends said they suspect that the killer was an acquaintance of Miles.
“It has to be someone who knows her, because she was not going to open her door to anyone,’’ said Charlene Henry Woods, who had known Miles for more than three decades.
During the service at Davis Funeral Home on Walnut Street, friends and family expressed disbelief at her death.
“I can’t believe what happened,’’ said Michael Harris, a cousin who collapsed, grief-stricken, on a lectern during the service. “Just like that, she is gone.’’
Scholange Smith, a friend of Miles’s for more than 20 years, last saw her alive during the Thanksgiving holidays, a moment she said she will always treasure.
“It’s sad to know that in less than a week she was dead,’’ Smith said. “Everybody needs to take time to see their family. You don’t want to see them for the last time in a casket.’’
Miles attended David A. Ellis Elementary School in Roxbury and graduated from Brighton High School in 1968. She attended Leslie College in Cambridge, according to the funeral home, and pursued teaching and dental hygiene careers.
One woman told mourners that Miles used to go on walks in Franklin Park with a pet parrot on her shoulder. The parrot eventually flew off and did not return.
Jaqueline Myers Gay, Miles’s hairstylist the past two years, called her client and friend a zoologist, who filled her home with cats, dogs, ferrets, and birds that often left her with nips and scratches.
She called Miles about two weeks ago to see if Miles wanted to give one of her cats to a friend. Miles responded she had already placed some of her cats in new homes and that if she gave away another, she would only have three left.
“Now, how many cats did Gail have?’’ asked Myers, with a chuckle. “She was a riot, very generous, very outgoing, very lively.’’
After the service, mourners filed out of the funeral home, and pallbearers carried out her brown casket. Munger and another Watertown police officer gave a salute. A hearse carried her body to Blue Hill Cemetery in Braintree.
“I’m just shocked,’’ said Deborah Herbert, a cousin from Amherst who went on cruises with Miles. “I’m just numb. You never prepare for something like this, but it would have been better if she had been sick or died suddenly. The way her life ended - ’’
Herbert did not finish the sentence and then quietly walked away.
Meghan Irons can be reached at mirons@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @meghanirons.