Weblog
Deputy Sheriff Kevin Stanton was killed when his patrol car was struck by a tractor-trailer on I-95, just north of Route 50, at approximately 5:10 am.
The tractor-trailer suffered a tire blow-out, causing the driver to lose control and swerve into the left lane where Deputy Stanton was driving. Deputy Stanton’s patrol car then struck the rear of the semi.
Deputy Stanton had served with the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office for 10-1/2 years.
Police Officer Justin Billa was shot and killed while assisting in the apprehension of a man who had just murdered his ex-wife.
Investigators at the scene of the original murder identified the subject as a person of interest. Officer Billa, along with other officers, went to the man’s home on Avondale Court to make contact with him. As the officers arrived on scene the subject exited the home and opened fire on them, striking Officer Billa. Another officer returned fire as the subject retreated back into the home.
Officer Billa was transported to the University of South Alabama Medical Center where he died a short time later.
The subject remained barricaded inside his home for the next three hours. His body was recovered from the home following the standoff.
Officer Billa had served with the Mobile Police Department for two years. He is survived by his wife and one 1-year-old son.
Corporal Mujahid Ramzziddin was shot and killed at approximately 10:15 am while attempting to protect a female subject who was being attacked in a domestic violence incident in a neighborhood near the intersection of Chadds Ford Drive and Chadsey Lane.
Corporal Ramzziddin, was off duty and lived nearby, attempted to protect the female and confronted the man who was armed with a shotgun. The subject, who had a protective order issued against him, fatally shot Corporal Ramzziddin before stealing his service weapon and fleeing in a vehicle.
Responding officers pursued the man approximately 10 miles before he stopped and attempted to flee into a nearby wooded area. The man was shot and killed by pursuing officers after shooting at them.
Corporal Ramzziddin was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and had served with the Prince George’s County Police Department for 14 years. He is survived by his wife and four children.
Deputy Sheriff John Isenhour was struck by a vehicle at the entrance to Tanglewood Park on Clemmons Road at approximately 10 a.m. while he was working at an annual cycling event.
He was transported to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, where he succumbed to his injuries ten days later.
Deputy Isenhour had served with the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office for eleven months and was a 17-year veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He is survived by his wife and children.
Deputy Sheriff Scott Williams was killed in a vehicle crash near the intersection of US 98 and Beach Road at approximately 7:00 am.
He suffered fatal injuries when his patrol car collided with the rear of a logging truck.
Deputy Williams had served with the Taylor County Sheriff’s Office for 17 months and had previously served with the Brooksville Police Department.
Deputy Sheriff John Kotfila was killed in a head-on collision with a vehicle that was driving the wrong direction on the Selmon Expressway, at the Brandon Express exit near I-75, at approximately 3:00 am.
He was returning to the station after investigating an unrelated traffic accident when a drunk driver entered the expressway heading west in the eastbound lanes, causing a head-on collision. The drunk driver died at the scene. Deputy Kotfila was transported to Tampa General Hospital where he later died.
Deputy Kotfila had served with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office for six years. He is survived by his parents, sister, and two brothers. His father, one brother, and both of his grandfathers served in law enforcement in Massachusetts.