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Memorial Grows For Slain Police Commander

(WBBM Newsradio) -- Outside the Thompson Center is a memorial to Chicago Police Comdr. Paul Bauer -- growing by the hour.

There were flowers, dozens of flowers, a candle and a police badge, among the items seen Wednesday.

They have been placed by the stairwell outside the Thompson Center -- the stairwell where Bauer, 53, was shot and killed on Tuesday afternoon.

Bauer Memorial
Items adorn the spot where Chicago Police Cmdr. Paul Bauer was fatally shot this week. (Steve Miller/WBBM Newsradio)

"Paul's daughter goes to school with my kids," one visitor said. "He was just the nicest person you could ever meet, and I know it sounds cliché, but if there was a person like that, he was probably it."

Across the street from the Thompson Center, there was a bizarre juxtaposition. The TV show "Chicago PD" has been filming for part of the day.

Bauer, a veteran of the Chicago Police Department, was fatally wounded when he approached an armed suspect whose description had come over the police radio. Bauer was commander of the 18th Police District, Near North.

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