2000 - Present Line Of Duty Deaths

Note :  Some of these tributes are for those that were not line of duty deaths.

Tributes for police and military K9 handlers

Both officer and K9 were killed in line of duty

   

 

Staff Sgt. Donald T. Tabb, 29, of Norcross, Ga., was killed around 2 p.m. on February 5, 2008 after his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device in Sangin, Afghanistan. Tabb was patrolling a road along the Helmand River in a joint patrol coalition/Afghan patrol when their vehicle hit a mine planted on the road.  The blast resulted in Tabb being wounded and injured two other soldiers. Sergeant Tabb was immediately medically evacuated to Camp Bastian but succumbed to his wounds in-flight prior to arrival. He was a dog handler serving in Afghanistan with the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force. Tabb worked as a dog handler with a 2 year old black Labrador bomb sniffing dog named “Bo” who was injured in the attack that killed Tabb, but survived. His K-9 partner "Bo" was wounded above his left eye and was sent back to the U.S. to attend his handlers funeral February 16, 2008 who was buried at Georgia National Cemetery in Canton, Georgia. Donald entered the Army on February 6, 1999, attending basic training and advanced individual training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. Tabb recently completed the Army's dog-handling course reserved for high-performing military policemen. Tabb was serving with the 6th Military Police Detachment, 13th Aviation Regiment. Tabb left for Afghanistan in October and was his fifth deployment. Donald served as a gunner, driver, team leader, squad leader, platoon sergeant, special reaction team leader, U.S. customs inspector and specialized search dog handler. Donald's military deployments were to Kosovo, Iraq and two tours to Afghanistan. SSgt. Tabb is survived by his mother, Gloria Smith.  He is also survived by two sisters, Khadjha and Ebonee, and two brothers Robert and Willie. Bo, due to his injuries, was retired from military service on April 18, 2008 and was adopted by Tabb's brother, Willie Smith. Traditionally, a military working dog outranks the handler by one grade. Bo was officially retired as master sergeant. Tabb, was posthumously promoted to sergeant first class on April 18, 2008, at a  ceremony held at the Gwinnett County Fallen Heroes Memorial.

Sheriff Deputy Anthony Sean Pursifull

Video http://www.LoHud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071120/MULTIMEDIA01/71120005         

Officer Darrell Burris, 37, died in a car accident on November 15, 2007 while off duty in Carmel, New York. The accident happened at 6:45 p.m. on Drewville Road when he lost control of his personal 2003 Toyota SUV vehicle and veered into an on coming SUV driven by 29-year-old Adam Warm of Patterson, NY, who had his 1-year- old son as a passenger. Burris was taken to the Putnam Hospital Center in Carmel, where he was pronounced dead. Adam Warm and his son were taken to Danbury Hospital in Connecticut and treated for non-life-threatening injuries.  A 19-year-old Brewster man, Ethan Taublib, was also injured when he drove into the wreck and was treated at Putnam Hospital Center. Officer Burris died three days before his 38th birthday and one day before he was going to be promoted to Sergeant. Officer Burris was returning home from the hospital where he had some tests done when the accident occurred. Cold Spring has a part-time police department, with Burris as the only full-time officer. Officer Burris had been partnered with his K9 “Duncan” for only one year who was a black Labrador, who recently turned 3 years old. Burris and Duncan earned a trip to compete in the United States Police Canine Association's National Detector Trials when they beat out 16 out of 17 teams from New York and Connecticut in the Region 7 Narcotics Detector Trials at the Orange County Sheriff's K-9 Academy in Montgomery. When Officer Burris and K9 “Duncan competed at the United States Police Canine Association's National Narcotics Detector Trials in Cloquet, Minnesota in May, 2007, against 79 teams of narcotics-detector dogs and their handlers, he finished fifth in the vehicle search narcotic detector category. The team is judged on how fast the dog can detect hidden drugs. Officer Burris said the success of him and his K9 “Duncan” were due to Sgt. David Campbell and Deputy James Cleary of the Orange County Sheriff’s Canine Academy, and Sgt. William Finucan of the MTA Police. Burris had worked as a dispatcher for ten years at the state police barracks in Somers, was former officer for the Pound Ridge Police Department, and then joined the Cold Spring department where he was employed for six years and became the head of the 14-member force. He was a proud member of the the North American Police Work Dog Association and the US Police K-9 Association.   He  was also a veteran of the Coast Guard. The new sergeant's badge that was to be given to Officer Darrell Burris was pinned to the Cold Spring police uniform that he wore at his funeral. After the Funeral Mass, Darrell was cremated. More than 100 police canine officers with their canines attended the funeral. Officer Burris leaves behind his wife Linda, and fourteen-year-old son Ryan, along with his canine partner, Duncan. K9 Duncan was given to his wife Linda to raise with her family. Contributions in his memory may be made to The Orange County K-9 Academy, P.O. Box 221, Montgomery, NY  12549.

Army Cpl. Kory D. Wiens

 

 

Army Cpl. Kory D. Wiens and his K9 "Cooper" were killed while on patrol on July 6, 2007 by an explosive in the town of Muhammad Sath, Iraq. Wiens was assigned to the 94th Mine Dog Detachment, 5th Engineer Battalion, 1st Engineer Brigade, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. Wiens and his dog were trained to find materials such as TNT, detonation cords, smokeless powder, mortars, weapons, tools and explosive residue used to make explosives. Kory enlisted into the Army to gain experience for pursuing a career in law enforcement. He attended canine school at the 341st  Training Squadron, Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, where he met his partner, a yellow Labrador Retriever named " Cooper ". The two deployed to Iraq in January. Their abilities to detect TNT, C4, detonation cords, smokeless powder and mortars saved countless lives by taking explosives and other IED manufacturing materials off the streets of Iraq. Kory was a wrestler and quarterback of the football team at West Albany High School where he graduated in 2005. When Kory was born he was named after his grandfather who was a canine handler during the Korean War. Kory and K9 "Cooper" were the first K9 team to be killed together since the Vietnam War. Cpl Kory D. Wiens and his K9 "Cooper" were escorted back to his home town of Independence, Oregon by his older brother Kevin who was also serving on a second tour in Iraq as a military police officer for the Army. Thirty-seven K9 teams from the Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and area police department  K9 teams from around the state attended the funeral on July 18, 2007. Kory was buried at Salt Creek Cemetery in his hometown of Dallas, Oregon. Wiens was awarded a number of medals posthumously: The Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Army Conduct Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal and the Glogal War on Terrorism Medal. Kory and his K9 partner "Cooper" were both cremated and buried together. Approximately 300 people attended his service. He is survived by his father Kevin; mother Judith ( also known as Laura ); brothers Kevin and Kyle; and sister Lindsey. The Army dedicated a memorial to a fallen soldier on December 4, 2007. The 5th Engineer Battalion named a 36-dog kennel and veterinary facility after Cpl. Kory Wiens at Fort Leonard Wood. The kennel is for the 94th Mine Dog Detachment based at the Fort. The Kory Wiens Memorial Fund, set up by the Wiens family, is accepting donations at Washington Federal Savings Bank. The money will be used to customize Wiens’ 1972 Dodge “Swinger” and the vehicle will be used as a memorial to Wiens and Cooper.

Pc Lance Williams, 38, from Llandrindod Wells, Powys, attacked his wife while off duty and then committed suicide on June 11, 2007.  Lance Williams flew into a rage about the break up of his marrage to his wife, Wendy, 36, who he was married to for nine years. At the time they were seperated for one month and the two children, Elinor, 11, and Lewys, nine were living with Wendy's mother. It was Wendy's birthday the day she arrived at his home on Oxford Road, Llandrindod Wells, to collect their two children. When Wendy arrived, Elinor opened the door and said Lewys was finishing his tea. Wendy  waited in the hall and saw Lance who told her to get off his property.  Lance Williams then grabbed Wendy by her wrist and pushed her to the floor. He dragged his wife into the hallway and punched and kicked her in the head before stabbing her in the chest and hand with a kitchen knife in front of his 2 children, and then commited suicide by hanging himself at approximately 5:00 p.m. Lance Williams had stabbed himself in the chest before hanging himself from the attic hatch at his modern detached house with his dog's choker and leash. Pc Lance Williams worked as a dog handler for Dyfed-Powys Police.

          

 

 

    

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Marine Cpl. Dustin Jerome Lee, 20, a Marine K9 handler, was killed on March 21, 2007 while conducting combat operations in Fallujah, Iraq, just six weeks before he was expected to return home. Dustin Lee died of injuries suffered in a mortor attack when shrapnel hit him in the chest and was medi-vaced out to an area hospital where he died a short time later.  Lee was assigned to Headquarters Battalion, Marine Corps Logistics Base Albany, GA. before deploying for Iraq.  His dog Lex received injuries but non life-threatening. K9 "Lex" was sent back to the U.S. to attended his handlers funeral on March 31, 2007. Dusty's family is in the process of adopting Lex. Dustin was born in Meridian, Mississippi, graduated from Quitman High School in 2004. Dustin's father, Jerome Lee has been a trooper for Troop H of the Mississippi Highway Patrol since 1982. Survivors include his parents, Jerome and Rachel Rich Lee, younger brother Camryn Matthew Lee, and sister Madyson Taylor Lee. Donations may be made to any Bank Plus Branch, Jerome or Rachel Lee, Corporal Dustin Jerome Lee Memorial.

Corporal Phillip Michael Deese

Corporal Phillip Michael Deese, 38, was on patrol when an eastbound pickup truck crossed the median of I-26 near the Harleyville exit and slammed into his cruiser head on at 5:20 p.m. Deese and the driver of the pickup, 53-year-old Christopher Burnham Junior of Summerville, both died instantly. Deese's patrol dog, Sonja, was in the back of his cruiser and also died. The accident caused a chain reaction that involved three other vehicles in the wreck but no one in the other cars were seriously injured.  One, a 2006 Sebring, was driven by Desmona Brown, 27, of Johns Island, who was transported to Trident Regional Medical Center in North Charleston. The fourth vehicle was a 2003 silver Mutsibishi driven by Ashley Grimsburg, 20, of Rock Hill. She has two passengers with minor injures. The fifth vehicle was a 2005 Saturn, driven by a 23-year-old, who was not injured. Deese had been a Dorchester County deputy since May 2001 and was named Deputy of the Year by the South Carolina Sheriff's Association after he and a different police dog, K-9 "Bailey" were both shot during a domestic violence call on April 6, 2003. Deese stopped after he was flagged down by a woman, Ashley Phillips,35, of 105 Monarch Drive who said her husband, Timothy Matthew Phillips, 41, had a loaded shotgun. While he talked to her, her husband emerged from some bushes and started firing wounding Deputy Deese in the face, shoulder and chest but Deputy Deese was able to shoot back from his cruiser. Deese returned fire while he called for backup and an ambulance and reversed his car away from the shooter. Phillips continued shooting into the police vehicle as it backed away, hitting Deese's K-9 partner Bailey. Officer J. Dandridge arrived on the scene, helped Deese into the back of his patrol car and left the scene. He met the responding ambulance on Tupperway Drive and then transferred the deputy into the ambulance. Assessing wounds in the deputy's arm, face, shoulder and chest, EMS personnel asked Officer Dandridge to drive the ambulance so that they could begin to treat Deese. Deese had more than 100 pellets lodged in his arm and was looking at more surgery to remove them as they work their way out of his skin. Phillips was arrested at the scene as more than 20 units from various agencies arrived as backup. He was charged with criminal domestic violence, high and aggravated assault and battery with intent to kill, possession of a weapon in commission of a violent crime and malicious injury to a police dog. A jury found Phillips guilty of assault and battery with intent to kill, malicious injury to a police dog and the possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. Phillips was sentenced to five years on the weapons charge, three years and a $2,000 fine for injuring the K-9 and 15 years for the assault on Deputy Deese, all to run concurrently. K-9 Bailey was retired and became a pet in the Deese household. Deese was both the recipient of a medal of valor and a deputy of the year honor. It is the first time in the history of the organization that one deputy received both honors. Corporal Deese served on the law enforcement agency's Special  Response Team and also the honor guard. At the request of the family, K-9 "Sonja" will be buried with Corporal Deese. Approximately 60 police K-9'S attended his funeral. He is survived by his wife Angela Jo, daughter Caley Lydia age 3, and two step-children, Brittani and Avery. A memorial fund has been established to help the Deese family and donations can be sent to Dorchester County Sheriff Office Memorial Fund, 212 Deming Way, Summerville, SC 29483.

On 1/11/07 just before 10 a.m., police were called to Murphy Oil USA on Hope Mills Road to look into a report of someone stealing gasoline. The person, who police say was Ricky Allen Wilson Jr., 23,  left the convenience store and was later seen in a van by field training officer. The field training officer recognized Wilson as being wanted on a previous warrant that involved unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. A passenger in Wilson’s vehicle was caught, but Wilson got away. Wilson was spotted in the afternoon by a sheriff’s deputy along Cameron Road and U.S. 301 and fled into a wooded area. Sergeant James Hardin and his K9 partner searched 45 minutes and 2 to 2 miles into the woods for Wilson who had fled from officers on foot. They approached a 6-foot fence the dog could not cross and were huddled to regroup when Hardin collapsed and died from a fatal heart attack. Hardin was rushed to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. Ricky Allen Wilson was caught about 5:15 p.m. on Perch Drive in Fayetteville. Hardin was in excellent shape and had passed a physical exam more than a month ago.  Sergeant Hardin had served with the Hope Mills Police Department for 9 years and was Police Officer of the Year in 2000 for the Town of Hope Mills. Hardin completed basic law enforcement training at Sampson Community College in May 1997. He became a patrol officer with the Hope Mills Police Department in August 1997. He worked his way up from officer to shift supervisor and to corporal in September 2004. On July 14, 2006, Hardin was promoted to sergeant. Hardin is a  Lumbee Native American Indian who was a ceremonial dancer and performed at many powwows. Hardin served as head dancer, one of the highest honors for a dancer, on several occasions at powwows. He was one of the young fancy Native dancers who went to Europe to participate in the Carnivale in Nice, France and partially responsible for the US bringing home the 1st place trophy.  A memorial fund has been set up at First Citizens Bank. Donations may be directed to The Heath Hardin Memorial Fund, c/o First Citizens Bank, 3626 N. Main St., Hope Mills, N.C. 28348. Hardin is survived by his wife, Shelly C. Hardin; daughter, Samantha Yvette Hardin; and son, James Mason Hardin. 

Ricky Allen Wilson Jr., 23, is charged with felony fleeing to elude arrest, driving with a revoked license, larceny of fuel, misdemeanor possession of stolen goods, driving with a fictitious or revoked registration plate, reckless driving to endanger and being the driver in a hit-and-run and failing to stop for property damage. He previously was wanted in an attempted break-in of a house. His total bail was set at $2,500.

 

On June 13,  2002, Officer Robert Fumiatti, along with about 10 officers had just finished a drug raid in another section of New Haven when they drove up to Washington and West streets in an unmarked van. They spotted what they thought was a hand-to-hand drug deal and stopped the vehicle. Fumiatti was the first officer out. He was shot  before he could draw his gun at 9:15 p.m.  Arnold Bell, 36, shot Officer Fumiatti with a 38 caliber Colt Cobra revolver and then fled from police.  Fumiatti's heart stopped and was restarted in the ambulance on the way to the emergency room at Yale-New Haven Hospital and arrived there at 9:25 p.m. He was dead for 3 minutes and 43 seconds. The single bullet entered Fumiatti's right cheek about level with the bottom of his ear and ricocheted downward off a molar, ripping through the esophagus and cracking his top vertebra in officer's Fumiatti’s  neck. The bullet, which was never removed, caused partial paralysis to his arm. Up to 100 officers quickly converged on the scene in a massive manhunt for the shooter and cordoned off a nearly six-block area as they search yard by yard with shepherds and a blood hound along with state police helicopters. A police SWAT team found Bell hiding under a bush in a yard 50 yards from family members at approximately 2 a.m. and arrested him after a four -and-a-half hour search through the city's neighborhood. Superior Court Judge Holly Abery-Wetstone set bail at 5 million after Arnold Bell was arrested. For weeks Fumiatti was in critical condition. He had to wear a halo brace for 4 1/2 months bolted to his head for the resulting cervical fracture. He spent a month in the hospital and suffered partial paralysis of one arm for months and spent a year in intense physical therapy. He had frequent visits to his physicians to keep track of a pacemaker he was given to help him recover with his injuries. At the time of the incident, Fumiatti was a three and a half year veteran of the New Haven Police Department and was assigned to the patrol unit.  After Robert Fumiatti was shot in the face he was out of work for 18 months and then returned to work in January 26, 2004 as a K-9 Handler after intensive rehab, even though a bullet remained lodged near his spine. He was later diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and suffered several setbacks that put him on leave for awhile. Fumiatti’s father, Vin, retired in 1994 as a detective from the New Haven Police Department. On September 14, 2004 Robert was awarded the purple heart by New Haven officials.  On January 10, 2007 Officer Robert Fumiatti died of natural causes related to cardiac sarcoidosis an autopsy showed. Officer Fumiatti was buried with his badge, # 24, the same badge worn by his father and now that badge number will be retired and never worn again. Approximately one thousand mourners attended his funeral along with dozens of police canines. He is survived by his wife Stacey and their three children, Madelyn 7, Caitlyn 3 and Vinnie 2.   His  K-9 narcotic dog is "Major".

On June 15, 2002, Michael Rice, 37, of Milford, was arrested in connection with the shooting  He was accused of providing the .38-caliber gun used to wound Officer Robert Fumiatti during a drug raid who was later released on bond. The police earlier arrested Arnold Bell, 36, charging him with attempted murder and assault on a police officer.  In February 2003, Gary Mills, 40, of New Haven, Connecticut, was indicted by a federal grand jury in February 2003 in connection with the possession of a .38 caliber Colt Cobra revolver. He pleaded guilty to being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm that had traveled in interstate commerce as evidence was about to begin in his jury trial in New Haven federal court. Documents filed with the Court, in December 2001, reveal that a crack-addicted individual gave Mills the .38 caliber revolver in connection with a drug transaction. Specifically, Mills took the gun and provided the addict with a quantity of crack cocaine. The record in the case reflects that Mills maintained possession of the weapon until February 2002, when he transferred the gun to Arnold Bell of New Haven. Several months later, on June 13, 2002, Bell shot New Haven police officer Robert Fumiatti in the face with the weapon. On June 14, 2002, Bell was found in a yard at 2:00 a.m. after a short manhunt and a judge set the bond for $ 5 million. The gun was recovered at the scene of the officer’s shooting. Court records reflect that, prior to December 2001, Mills had been convicted of numerous felony offenses. As a result of his prior record, Mills faces the enhanced sentencing penalties applicable under the federal Armed Career Criminal Act. At that time, Mills faces a mandatory minimum term of 15 years of imprisonment and a maximum term of life. On April 6, 2004, a jury of four men and two women deliberated for about a day before finding Arnold Bell, 38, guilty of first-degree assault, carrying a pistol without a permit and criminal possession of a firearm. Bell also has been convicted of a federal firearms charge related to the shooting, and had an extensive criminal history. At the time of the shooting Police found three latex gloves, including one that was caught in a gun, near the site of the shooting. Two of the gloves, with Bells palm prints inside, were found near a home owned by Bell's father. On June 4, 2004, Superior Court Judge Robert Devlin Jr. imposed a sentence for Arnold Bell of 45 years. The state is now looking into charging Arnold Bell with Capital Felony Murder. Bell has prior convictions dating back to 1982. Bell was first jailed Dec. 6, 1982, at age 16, when he was taken to the New Haven Correctional Center on charges of second-degree and third-degree robbery, according to state records. He was discharged after posting $25,000 bail that same day.  Bell was readmitted to the same jail Jan. 3, 1983 on the robbery charges and discharged Jan. 12, 1983. In the years that followed, Bell was arrested on a series of larceny charges as well as first-degree robbery and violation of probation.  Bell was incarcerated at the Manson Youth Institute in Cheshire from Sept. 18, 1984 to March 31, 1985.  In July 1985 Bell was again arrested, this time for breach of peace and carrying a pistol without a permit. He served time in several correctional centers until being discharged in June 1986.  Bell got into further trouble with the law in February 1988 when he was arrested on charges of first-degree and third-degree assault. He was in prison from April 28, 1988 to May 26, 1988, when he was released to a community residence.  But in September 1988 Bell was arrested on charges of selling narcotics and possessing narcotics with intent to sell. He was in prison on state charges from March 1989 to December 1995, but was retained in custody after that because of a federal charge: being a felon in possession of a firearm.  Bell had been on prison furlough Jan. 14, 1994, when New Haven police caught him with a 9-mm assault weapon. The gun also appeared to have been stolen, officials said, because its serial number had been obliterated. In August 1996 state prison officials turned Bell over to federal authorities and he began serving his federal sentence in New York and New Jersey prisons. Gary Mills pleaded guilty in October 2006 to being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Gary Mills was sentenced on January 22, 2007 to 15 years and eight months in prison for possessing a gun to shoot Officer Robert Fumiatti.

Officer Thomas Wood, 37, was shot and killed on 10/23/06 while sitting in his police patrol car with his window rolled down and his truck in park in the suburban village of Maywood, Illinois. Wood was found shot once in the back of the head, twice in the side of the head and once in the chest,  and  slumped over the steering wheel of his police-issued SUV at 11:17 p.m. When he was found his SUV had the drivers side window down, vehicle in park with the engine running and his weapon and wallet were still on him. He was pronounced dead at 11:43 p.m. at the nearby Loyola University Medical Center. Wood was a seven-year department veteran and served as a  K-9 officer for the past 2 ½ years and is the first on-duty slaying of a police officer in the department's history. The shooting happened near 6th Avenue and Erie Street. Wood worked the 3 p.m.-to-midnight shift for the police department and was on his last call of the night when the shooting occurred. Wood's canine partner "Daro", a malinois shepherd, was in the police car during the shooting but was not injured. Wood was shot after notifying dispatchers that a drug trafficking call he investigated was unfounded. Officer Wood  also worked as a part-time security officer at Proviso East High School in Maywood and at a Target store in Broadview.  Before joining the Maywood Police Department, Wood was a reserve officer with the Schiller Park Police Department from 1992 to 1996 and worked part time for the Stone Park Police Department from 1995 to 1997. He joined the Maywood force in 1999. Officer Wood is survived by his wife Helene, 36, and five children ranging in age from 8 to 16 years old. ( Nicholas, Alyssa, Kyle, Devin, Savannah ) Wood and his wife, Helene, were married for eight years and had two children together — a 6-year-old girl and a 7-year-old boy. He also helped raise three other children from his wife's previous marriage. An estimated 1,500 mourners attended the funeral service along with about 20 K-9 units. The suspect fled the scene and remains at large. Maywood investigators asked the public for help finding the shooter. Those with information have been asked to call the Maywood Police Department at 708-450-4409 or 708-450-4471. A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the killer of Maywood Police Officer Thomas Wood. The reward is sponsored by Aftermath Inc., a company that specializes in crime-scene cleanups. On November 8, 2006 the $10,000 reward was increased to $30,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the killing of Officer Thomas Wood. The increase in the award was due to police agencies around the region that donated approximately $10,000, the village of Maywood contributed approximately $10,000 along with $10,000 contributed by Aftermath who put up the initial reward money. Also on November 8, 2006 at a village board meeting an ordinance to retire Wood's German shepherd "Daro" was approved.  The ownership of the dog will be transferred to the Wood family because the dog would be useful to the department for about one more year and the dog would be more comfortable living with the family. On November 16, 2006 the award money was increased again from $30,00 to $100,000 when an anonymous donor donated $70,000. The F.B.I. joined in with the investigation on January 15, 2008 and is asking anyone with any information about the slaying to call the F.B.I.'S Chicago office at 312-421-6700. A memorial fund has been established at 1st Suburban National Bank, 150 S. 5th Avenue, Maywood, Illinois 60153. Donations may be made to Thomas T. Wood Children's Trust Fund.  The bank can be reached at 708-450-4100.

Funeral ( click on link below )

apps.thedmonline.com/ss/200610261/

Canine Officer, Robert Langley, 30, of Oxford died on 10/21/06 during a motor vehicle stop involving a student  of the University of Mississippi. Officer Michelle Thompson and Officer Robert Langley were setting up to catch speeders on campus. Officer Langley radioed Officer Thompson that he had clocked a black Ford F-150 doing 40 in an 18 mph zone. Officer Thompson had stopped Daniel Reed Cummings, 20, a second-year sophomore liberal arts major student, about 2 a.m. for speeding westbound on Fraternity Row.  The driver, stopped on Jackson Avenue and Officer Thompson approached the vehicle and asked for his drivers license. Officer Langley approached from the other side and began looking with a flashlight in the truck cab. Cummings handed over his drivers license while Officer Thompson continued to talk to him. Officer Thompson asked Cummings for his proof of insurance. He opened the truck's door and stood out, then reached as though he was reaching for the glove compartment, jumped in the truck quickly pulling away. Officer Langley reached into the truck while Cummings drove off down Jackson Street with Langley running beside the truck. Langley attempted to hold on as the truck approached the intersection of Jackson and Hathorn streets as the truck accelerated and swerved dragging Officer Langley about 200 yards. Langley suffered severe head injuries and was taken by helicopter to Regional Medical Center in Memphis, where he was pronounced dead about 11 a.m. Langley, a four-year veteran of the 30-officer department, also served in the Mississippi Army National Guard and recently became a canine officer and certified his police K9 “Truus”. He returned in April after a tour in Afghanistan as a field artillery man with the Guard's 1st Battalion of the 114th Artillery. and is the first University of Mississippi officer killed in the line of duty. Langley was a 4-year veteran of the University Police Department. Oxford police found the vehicle in town about 20 minutes later and soon after found Cummings a couple of miles away at his off-campus apartment.   Langley is survived by wife, Lisa, two sons and two stepdaughters. About 1,000 people attended the funeral of Robert Langley who was buried with full military honors. During the full military honor, a bugler sounded “Taps,” a bagpiper played “Amazing Grace,” an honor guard offered a 21-gun salute, and a brace of helicopters from the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office performed a flyover of the site. Officer Langley received the Army Commendation Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon and the Mississippi War Medal. During a football game on October 28, 2006 at the University of Mississippi's Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, students passed around buckets for contributions to the 55,000 football fans and collected $114,730.69 for the Robert Langley Children's Fund. Contributions to the children's funds can be sent to Kristy Cohron at M & F Bank, 1111 Jackson Avenue, Oxford, MS.  Family and friends also have established the Robert Langley Memorial Scholarship Endowment to provide scholarships for Ole Miss criminal justice majors and gifts to that fund can be sent to the University of Mississippi Foundation, P.O. Box 249, University, MS 38677.  Contributions can also be made online at www.umf.olemiss.edu/langley/

Daniel Reed Cummings, who is from Germantown, Tenn., has been charged with capital murder. He was being held without bond in the Lafayette County Detention Center. If convicted, Cummings could face the death penalty for capital murder of a police officer. A background check by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigations revealed that a man by the same name and address as Cummings had been arrested twice in that state for vandalism. and cited for speeding in a school zone. The vandalism arrests were made on June 1, 2005 and March 31, 2005, and expunged from the record in July, officials said. There was a probationary period, and at the end of that period parts of that probation were met and a judge signed off on it.  During the bond hearing on November 8, 2006, prosecutors say in a motion that Cummings tested positive for alcohol, cocaine and marijuana in his system the morning Robert Langley was killed and requested a continuance. The lead prosecutor announced on November 20, 2006 that the state will not seek the death penalty against Daniel Reed Cummings. A conviction could result in life in prison without parole or life in prison with possibility of parole. A hearing has been reset for November 29, 2006 and Daniel Cummings was denied bond.

On October 15, 2007, Daniel Reed Cummings was sentenced to 20 years in prison under a plea agreement reached on the weekend before his trial with prosecutors and Langley's widow, Lisa, and the officer's parents. The plea was made before Lafayette County Circuit Court Judge Andrew Howorth. The court accepted the prosecutors recommendation that Cummings also be ordered to pay court costs and he will receive credit for the year he has already spent in the Lafayette County Detention Center and will be required to serve 85 percent of his sentence which would be 17 years.  After his guilty plea, Cummings wanted to address Langley's widow, but she indicated that she did not want to hear from him.

Sheriff Deputy Vernon Matthew "Matt" Williams

Deputy Matt Williams Tribute

http://www.theledger.com/static/flash_video/20061004_matt_williams/index.html

Polk County Sheriff Deputy, Vernon Matthew "Matt" Williams, 39, was shot and killed along with his K-9 Diogi on 9/28/06.  The incident started at 11:45 a.m. during a routine traffic stop for speeding near North Wabash Avenue and West 10th Street in Lakeland, Florida. Deputy Douglas Speirs, 39, who made the traffic stop was asked by the suspect if he was going to jail and the deputy replied that he didn't know. Speirs tried to identify the driver, who was driving a rental car, but the driver said he did not have a driver's license. The driver told Spiers that he had a Florida identification card. The deputy went back to his car and couldn't find any record of the name on the card.  Investigators said the man sought in connection with the shootings identified himself to an officer during the traffic stop as Eswardo Ramclaim of Miami. However, sheriff's deputies believe that Ramclaim may be the man's alias. Matt Williams, arrived to provide backup with his K-9 German shepherd “Doigi” who he was partnered with since 2000. The suspect then fled into a wooded area nearby, pursued by the two deputies and K-9 Doigi who went into the woods approximately 300 feet. At 12:30 p.m., numerous shots were fired and Speirs took cover, then went toward the gunshots. He saw the suspect and returned fire. The suspect disappeared again before popping back up and shooting Spiers. Sheriff Deputy Williams and his K-9 Doigi were shot and killed instantly. Deputy Douglas Speirs, who is married and has two sons, was shot in the leg and treated and released later that day from Lakeland Regional Medical Center.  The suspect later exchanged gunfire about 20 minutes later when Lakeland Police Detective Jeff Birdwell and Officer Jose Bosque when they pulled into Paul Prebor's driveway at 1446 N. Wabash Avenue to warn residents to stay inside. Prebor said they asked him whether the man in the back yard had any business being there. When Prebor said no, the man, instead of running, came toward the three men and shot at least twice, Prebor said. He said Birdwell shot back twice as the gunman disappeared. Two shots hit an overhang on a utility room.  No one was hit. After the suspect fled into the woods they found a book detailing his drug transactions in the vehicle. Deputy Williams had been with the sheriff's office since April  1994 and prior to that he was a correctional officer at the state prison in Polk City. Post mortem results released showed Williams was shot eight times - one bullet fired at close range behind the deputy's right ear and another in his right temple, right leg, right wrist, upper right arm, right buttocks and spine, left bicep and rear left thigh. Williams was not wearing a protective vest at the time. His K-9 partner "Doigi" was shot once in the chest. Williams died on his  wife's 40th birthday. Two days before his death, Matt Williams ordered an ice cream cake -- with Oreo cookies, cherries and chocolate drizzle -- for his wife's 40th birthday which was going to be celebrated with the cake he was going to  pick up the day he died and never got the chance to pick the birthday cake up . During Williams' funeral service,  Williams' casket was moved into the Victory Church while his patrol car sat outside the church. Williams' retired canine deputy, "Rocky", attended the service. During the service a slideshow showed candid photos of Williams with his family and his police dog Diogi while Lionel Richie's "Endless Love" and Bob Carlisle's "Butterfly Kisses" played during interludes between eulogies. The funeral service was to be held at 1:00 p.m. but because of such a heavy turn out the service at the cemetery was almost 7:00 p.m. It took more than 2 hours for the funeral procession to travel 12 miles from the church to the cemetery. More than 200 police dogs attended the funeral. Nineteen police helicopters flew a missing man formation over the service, one helicopter peeling off to signify the slain deputy. Two nameplates were fastened on the lid of the casket, the first one said, "Vernon Matt Williams, 1967-2006." The second said, "Diogi, 2003-2006." More than 5,000 people attended the memorial service while the bagpipers played "Amazing Grace" and a traditional Scottish song called "Going Home." The ceremonies ended at the gravesite, when a dispatcher called o