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Tributes and Condolences Submissions

Please Feel Free to Use the Following Form to Submit Tributes and Condolences to any Officer Killed in the Line of Duty.

January 17, 2003
 
Norfolk VA Officer is the First Female on Norfolk VA Force to be Killed on Duty
 
Norfolk VA Police Officer Sheila Herring
 
Officer was fearless, colleagues say...
 
NORFOLK -- A city policewoman and a gunman were killed early Thursday in a shootout outside a Brambleton Avenue sports bar and grill.   Sheila Herring, 39, is the first female officer on the Norfolk force to be slain in the line of duty and the city's 36th officer killed on the job. Police said the gunman who fatally wounded her was killed during the shootout.
 
Officer Herring joined the department last February and graduated from the police academy in August. But she was hired with experience, having begun her career in 1989 with the Detroit police.
 
She and other officers responded to a call at 1:45 a.m. about a shooting inside Champion Sports Bar & Grill, at 1010 E. Brambleton Ave.  Four officers in two cruisers arrived at the one-story building and encountered people outside, said police spokesman Chris Amos.
 
A man pulled a handgun and shot Officer Herring, Amos said. She was hit three times in areas not protected by her bullet-resistant vest, including her abdomen, Amos said.
 
The officers returned fire and struck the gunman. He died at the scene. Police did not release his identity. Officer Herring died of her wounds at 2:51 a.m. at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital.  Another shooting victim was found inside the bar, Amos said. That man's injuries were not considered life-threatening. Police said the gunman shot him before officers arrived.
 
The gunman had gone to the bar earlier in the evening, left and returned around 1:30 a.m., said William McSwain, an assistant manager at Champion. He said that both the gunman and the man wounded in the initial shooting were regulars who had not met before. McSwain said he had turned off a metal detector at the entrance because he was preparing to close. It was a slow night, he said, so the usual security guard was not stationed at the door.
 
McSwain said he could not discuss the initial shooting because police had asked him not to, but he said the incident took place in less than three minutes. ``It was out of control,'' McSwain said. ``It happened so quickly. Everyone scattered.''
McSwain called 911 from both the bar phone and a cell phone. He said he locked the gunman out of the bar to protect himself, three workers and two patrons. From inside, he heard one gunshot, then several more.
 
Thursday was a somber day for police, who already were grieving the loss of another colleague. Detective Steven M. Crawford, 47, died at his home Monday. His funeral was Thursday afternoon.
 
Police officials and at least 200 officers gathered with friends and family during a ceremony at Rock Church in Virginia Beach. During the two-hour service, Crawford's career was celebrated by several speakers, including Police Chief Melvin C. High. A montage of photos appeared a screen while a recording of Vince Gill singing ``Go Rest High On That Mountain'' played.
 
`There's not a person on this department, sworn or civilian, that hasn't been touched in an adverse way by what's happened,'' Amos said. ``Everybody on the department knows one or the other. It's just been a difficult day, a long day. The clouds overhead are appropriate for a day like today.''
 
Funeral services for Officer Herring will be help on Tuesday, January 21, at 2pm at the Rock Church in Virginia Beach. Burial will follow in Officer Herring's original hometown of Detroit, Michigan.



National Police and Security Officers Association of America