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Tag: Charlotte Shooting

  • Lawyer representing former CMS coach says his client is victim, wrongly accused

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    The attorney representing a former Charlotte volunteer football coach accused of shooting at a southwest Charlotte home said his client has been wrongly accused.

    Dia’Mond Johnson, 27, was arrested in South Carolina Oct. 22 and charged with two counts of shooting into an occupied property in Charlotte.

    John J. Dowling III, Johnson’s attorney, said evidence shows his client was actually the victim of attempted first-degree murder.

    “We look forward to clearing his name in the very near future,” Dowling said.

    An arrest affidavit said three people were at the home on Doughton Lane at 11 p.m. Oct. 21 when the shooting occurred. The home was shot at twice and the bullet holes appeared to come from a rifle because of their smaller size, the affidavit said.

    “The house shot into appeared to be the backdrop of a shootout that occurred in the roadway,” the affidavit said. “There was also a large amount of glass from a vehicle that goes all the way down the street as if a car was shot into and drove away.”

    Two .223 casings, multiple 9 mm casings and a blue baseball hat were found in the roadway, the affidavit said.

    Witnesses told police they saw a black Dodge Durango with temporary tags driving from the scene.

    Earlier call to police

    Police had been in the neighborhood a few hours earlier for a domestic call involving Johnson and a woman, the affidavit said. They argued over the woman having two other men at her home.

    Police obtained text messages from the woman’s phone, the affidavit said, that had conversations between her and Johnson about two men threatening to shoot Johnson. She accused him in the texts of threatening the two men.

    Johnson texted the woman, “tell em to pull back up so we can have fun.” He sent the woman another message saying to “come outside come talk to me like a women, I am not sleeping.”

    The shooting occurred shortly after, the affidavit said.

    Johnson, who is from Clover, South Carolina, was arrested and held in York County. He was extradited to Charlotte on Oct. 24, Dowling said. Mecklenburg County court records show Johnson was released after posting a $20,000 bond.

    Johnson appeared in court Monday. In a phone interview with The Charlotte Observer on Tuesday, Dowling said he showed photos of Johnson’s vehicle in court with bullet holes in the windshield and driver’s side window. Dowling said someone shot first at Johnson and he fired to defend himself.

    Johnson was a volunteer football coach at Ballantyne Ridge High School. Principal Michael Miliote said Johnson would not be allowed to volunteer at any schools in the district anymore.

    Related Stories from Charlotte Observer

    Jeff A. Chamer

    The Charlotte Observer

    Jeff A. Chamer is a breaking news reporter for the Charlotte Observer. He’s lived a few places, but mainly in Michigan where he grew up. Before joining the Observer, Jeff covered K-12 and higher education at the Worcester Telegram & Gazette in Massachusetts.

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  • CMPD officers fatally shoot accused kidnapper who allegedly shot two others

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    Charlotte-Mecklenburg police fatally shot a person accused of kidnapping a woman and killing two others in west Charlotte on Thursday afternoon.

    Charlotte-Mecklenburg police fatally shot a person accused of kidnapping a woman and killing two others in west Charlotte on Thursday afternoon.

    Melissa Melvin-Rodriguez

    Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers shot and killed a person in west Charlotte who had been accused of fatally shooting two other people and kidnapping a third.

    Officers responded at 4 p.m. Thursday to a call about a shooting near the intersection of Hoskins Road and Black Avenue, Chief Johnny Jennings said in a video posted on X.

    One person was found dead at the scene and another died at after being taken to the hospital, a CMPD press release said.

    Shortly thereafter, police got another call in the same area about a kidnapping and home invasion, Jennings said. CMPD said the suspect was driving a stolen vehicle.

    Officers spotted the vehicle, with the suspect driving and the kidnapped woman in the passenger seat, the chief said.

    Officers chased the vehicle while the suspect fired at their cars. The suspect crashed his vehicle at the intersection of Freedom Drive and West Morehead Street, got out and ran away. Officers continued the chase on foot.

    “As they were running, the suspect continued to fire rounds at officers,” Jennings said. Officers fired back and hit the suspect, who was pronounced dead at the scene. A firearm was recovered at the scene, the news release said.

    None of the officers was seriously hurt; the woman was uninjured. She was found near the scene, Jennings said.

    Four officers were taken to the hospital as a precaution, the news release said.

    The officers involved were placed on administrative leave, which is standard protocol after a shooting involving police. The State Bureau of Investigation will investigate the shooting, CMPD’s news release said.

    This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

    Related Stories from Charlotte Observer

    Jeff A. Chamer

    The Charlotte Observer

    Jeff A. Chamer is a breaking news reporter for the Charlotte Observer. He’s lived a few places, but mainly in Michigan where he grew up. Before joining the Observer, Jeff covered K-12 and higher education at the Worcester Telegram & Gazette in Massachusetts.

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  • Two people shot, killed near former northwest Charlotte hotel, police say

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    Two people were killed Thursday afternoon in a shooting near a condemned northeast Charlotte motel, police said.

    Two people were killed Thursday afternoon in a shooting near a condemned northeast Charlotte motel, police said.

    Getty Images/iStockphoto

    Two people shot near a condemned northeast Charlotte hotel died shortly after being taken the hospital, a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police major said.

    The shooting occurred Thursday in the 4400 block of Eddleman Road, said Maj. Michael Anderson in a video posted to X.

    Both people had gunshot wounds, Anderson said. The individuals were not identified and CMPD did not release further details.

    Observer news partner WSOC posted a photo showing yellow crime scene tape near the Lamplighter Inn, located at 4425 Eddleman Road.

    A Charlotte Observer investigation published in July 2024 found tenants — many of whom were homeless — lived in poor conditions after a nonprofit housing program that advertised housing search assistance backed out. Local nonprofits eventually moved tenants out and the Charlotte Fire Department condemned and boarded up the building in December.

    Police asked people with information about Thursday’s shooting to contact CMPD’s homicide unit at 704-432-8477.

    This is a developing story.

    Related Stories from Charlotte Observer

    Jeff A. Chamer

    The Charlotte Observer

    Jeff A. Chamer is a breaking news reporter for the Charlotte Observer. He’s lived a few places, but mainly in Michigan where he grew up. Before joining the Observer, Jeff covered K-12 and higher education at the Worcester Telegram & Gazette in Massachusetts.

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  • A ‘deputy’s deputy’: Memorial service honors U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks

    A ‘deputy’s deputy’: Memorial service honors U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks

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    The life and service of Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks Jr. is being honored Monday at Bojangles’ Coliseum in Charlotte.

    The service began shortly after 10:30 a.m. as a group of bagpipers led a procession made up of family, carrying Weeks’ ashes up the aisle. It was followed by the presentation of colors and a soulful and somber singing of the national anthem. 

    Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Joe Graham opened the service, speaking to a large gathering of family, friends and members of the U.S. Marshal Service and other law enforcement agencies gathered to pay tribute to Weeks, 48, of Mooresville, North Carolina, who was killed on April 29 while trying to serve warrants on a wanted fugitive.

    U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, the director and various members of the U.S. Marshals Service and Weeks’ wife, Kelly Weeks were among those speaking at the service. Local and state officials were also in attendance, including Gov. Roy Cooper, N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings.

    Garland was the first to speak and opened by recounting the initial call he made to Weeks’ wife following the loss of her husband. Garland said he was taken back by the courage she demonstrated.

    During the call he said after offering her words of support, she responded by asking what she could do for the Marshals Service. “I called hoping to lift your spirits. The call ended with you lifting mine,” Garland said of the conversation.

    Garland spoke for several minutes about the man he described as “dedicated, selfless and courageous,” sharing details of not only his time in law enforcement but also his time as a hockey player, history buff, passionate golfer and all-around athlete. He also spoke on the impact Weeks had not only on the community, but those who served along side him.

    “Tommy would give you the shirt off his back to anyone,” he said.

    He closed by saying, “Please know that your husband, father, son and brother will always be remembered by this country as a hero. We will never stop working to fulfill the mission to which he gave his life.”

    Speakers went on to share humorous and heartfelt anecdotes about their fallen colleague. Among them, Deputy U.S. Marshal Ryan King talked about his time serving with Weeks and the close friendship they developed.

    When describing their partnership, King said, “We were like Daniel Glover and Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon.”

    “Tommy boy was a true shining star, he was original, he was authentic,” King said of his friend and partner. “He was passionate, he was resilient, he was competitive. He was a leader, a warrior, a hero to many, an inspiration and a mentor. I stated all week, tommy boy was legit, one of one. He has left so many memories to so many souls he has touched.”

    With strength and poise, Weeks’ wife Kelly finally stepped to the podium.

    “I’m humbled by all the people here, and Tommy would be humbled by the fact that we’re in a hockey arena,” she said as she began talking about her late husband.

    She spoke of her husband’s strength, courage and love for the community and country he served.

    “So many people have referred to him as a hero, but before this tragedy, he was already a hero to me and our family,” she said.

    During her comments, Kelly Weeks also spoke of how she intends to use her husband’s death to lift up and support the law enforcement community, calling on others to do so also.

    “What can we do? How can we help? What do you need? Tommy’s mission in life was to make the world safer and fight for justice, so what do I need? I need this country to come together to support our law enforcement officers so they can continue to fight for justice like my husband did every day,” she said.

    In closing, Kelly Weeks said, “To my husband, I will love you forever, my very sweet man.”

    You can watch the service live on The U.S. Department of Justice website by clicking here.

    Weeks was a 13-year veteran of the U.S. Marshals Service and had served in the Western District of North Carolina for the last 10 years. On April 30, employees of the United States District Court there gathered to remember him.

    “I’ll bet there were over 100 people talking about Tommy,” District Judge Bob Conrad said. “The thing that comes to mind with him is not only his competence at what he did, but his demeanor. Everybody remembers him and his smile.”

    “He enjoyed his job, and he was good at it,” Conrad added.

    Inside the courtroom, Weeks was responsible for security, and would often bring in defendants for a sentencing hearing.

    “He would sit behind in a way that didn’t draw attention to himself, but you knew that he was ready should anything go wrong,” Conrad said.

    Weeks also worked on the fugitive task force and was helping apprehend a suspect when he was killed on Monday. Conrad said Weeks knew the dangers of his job.

    “In many ways, he was a tough guy,” he said. “And he, like the other deputies he worked with, knew that there was no guarantee anytime they went out that they were going to come back.”

    Weeks started his Marshals Service career in 2011 in the District of Columbia’s Superior Court, Washington, D.C., according to a news release from the Service. He transferred to Charlotte in 2014. Prior to joining the Marshals, he spent eight years with Customs and Border Protection.

    He leaves behind a wife and four children. 

    Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Joshua Eyer and N.C. Adult Corrections Officers Sam Poloche and William “Alden” Elliott were also killed during the April 29 shooting. Poloche and Elliott were serving on a U.S. Marshal task force at the time.

    Four other officers were injured, but are recovering. 

    During Weeks’ service, Garland also commented on the officers sacrifice saying, “Their deaths stand as a stark reminder of the enormous risks our law enforcement officers face everyday even when making the relatively routine arrests they make everyday.”

    “While this community will never be the same without the brave officers we lost on April 29, it will be always be safer ebacuse of them,” he added.

    The incident became the deadliest attack on U.S. law enforcement since 2016, according to The Associated Press. 

     

    Related

    The 4 officers killed in N.C. were tough but kind and loved their jobs, friends say

     

    On Friday, Eyer was laid to rest at Sharon Memorial Park following a funeral service attended by hundreds of law enforcement from various agencies not only across the Charlotte region, but also other parts of the country. Eyer is the first of the four officers killed to be buried.

    Funeral services for Elliott are scheduled for Thursday, May 9, followed by Poloche on Monday, May 13.

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  • A ‘deputy’s deputy’: Memorial service honors U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks

    A ‘deputy’s deputy’: Memorial service honors U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks

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    The life and service of Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks Jr. is being honored Monday at Bojangles’ Coliseum in Charlotte.

    The service began shortly after 10:30 a.m. as a group of bagpipers led a procession made up of family, carrying Weeks’ ashes up the aisle. It was followed by the presentation of colors and a soulful and somber singing of the national anthem. 

    Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Joe Graham opened the service, speaking to a large gathering of family, friends and members of the U.S. Marshal Service and other law enforcement agencies gathered to pay tribute to Weeks, 48, of Mooresville, North Carolina, who was killed on April 29 while trying to serve warrants on a wanted fugitive.

    U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, the director and various members of the U.S. Marshals Service and Weeks’ wife, Kelly Weeks were among those speaking at the service. Local and state officials were also in attendance, including Gov. Roy Cooper, N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings.

    Garland was the first to speak and opened by recounting the initial call he made to Weeks’ wife following the loss of her husband. Garland said he was taken back by the courage she demonstrated.

    During the call he said after offering her words of support, she responded by asking what she could do for the Marshals Service. “I called hoping to lift your spirits. The call ended with you lifting mine,” Garland said of the conversation.

    Garland spoke for several minutes about the man he described as “dedicated, selfless and courageous,” sharing details of not only his time in law enforcement but also his time as a hockey player, history buff, passionate golfer and all-around athlete. He also spoke on the impact Weeks had not only on the community, but those who served along side him.

    “Tommy would give you the shirt off his back to anyone,” he said.

    He closed by saying, “Please know that your husband, father, son and brother will always be remembered by this country as a hero. We will never stop working to fulfill the mission to which he gave his life.”

    Speakers went on to share humorous and heartfelt anecdotes about their fallen colleague. Among them, Deputy U.S. Marshal Ryan King talked about his time serving with Weeks and the close friendship they developed.

    When describing their partnership, King said, “We were like Daniel Glover and Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon.”

    “Tommy boy was a true shining star, he was original, he was authentic,” King said of his friend and partner. “He was passionate, he was resilient, he was competitive. He was a leader, a warrior, a hero to many, an inspiration and a mentor. I stated all week, tommy boy was legit, one of one. He has left so many memories to so many souls he has touched.”

    With strength and poise, Weeks’ wife Kelly finally stepped to the podium.

    “I’m humbled by all the people here, and Tommy would be humbled by the fact that we’re in a hockey arena,” she said as she began talking about her late husband.

    She spoke of her husband’s strength, courage and love for the community and country he served.

    “So many people have referred to him as a hero, but before this tragedy, he was already a hero to me and our family,” she said.

    During her comments, Kelly Weeks also spoke of how she intends to use her husband’s death to lift up and support the law enforcement community, calling on others to do so also.

    “What can we do? How can we help? What do you need? Tommy’s mission in life was to make the world safer and fight for justice, so what do I need? I need this country to come together to support our law enforcement officers so they can continue to fight for justice like my husband did every day,” she said.

    In closing, Kelly Weeks said, “To my husband, I will love you forever, my very sweet man.”

    You can watch the service live on The U.S. Department of Justice website by clicking here.

    Weeks was a 13-year veteran of the U.S. Marshals Service and had served in the Western District of North Carolina for the last 10 years. On April 30, employees of the United States District Court there gathered to remember him.

    “I’ll bet there were over 100 people talking about Tommy,” District Judge Bob Conrad said. “The thing that comes to mind with him is not only his competence at what he did, but his demeanor. Everybody remembers him and his smile.”

    “He enjoyed his job, and he was good at it,” Conrad added.

    Inside the courtroom, Weeks was responsible for security, and would often bring in defendants for a sentencing hearing.

    “He would sit behind in a way that didn’t draw attention to himself, but you knew that he was ready should anything go wrong,” Conrad said.

    Weeks also worked on the fugitive task force and was helping apprehend a suspect when he was killed on Monday. Conrad said Weeks knew the dangers of his job.

    “In many ways, he was a tough guy,” he said. “And he, like the other deputies he worked with, knew that there was no guarantee anytime they went out that they were going to come back.”

    Weeks started his Marshals Service career in 2011 in the District of Columbia’s Superior Court, Washington, D.C., according to a news release from the Service. He transferred to Charlotte in 2014. Prior to joining the Marshals, he spent eight years with Customs and Border Protection.

    He leaves behind a wife and four children. 

    Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Joshua Eyer and N.C. Adult Corrections Officers Sam Poloche and William “Alden” Elliott were also killed during the April 29 shooting. Poloche and Elliott were serving on a U.S. Marshal task force at the time.

    Four other officers were injured, but are recovering. 

    During Weeks’ service, Garland also commented on the officers sacrifice saying, “Their deaths stand as a stark reminder of the enormous risks our law enforcement officers face everyday even when making the relatively routine arrests they make everyday.”

    “While this community will never be the same without the brave officers we lost on April 29, it will be always be safer ebacuse of them,” he added.

    The incident became the deadliest attack on U.S. law enforcement since 2016, according to The Associated Press. 

     

    Related

    The 4 officers killed in N.C. were tough but kind and loved their jobs, friends say

     

    On Friday, Eyer was laid to rest at Sharon Memorial Park following a funeral service attended by hundreds of law enforcement from various agencies not only across the Charlotte region, but also other parts of the country. Eyer is the first of the four officers killed to be buried.

    Funeral services for Elliott are scheduled for Thursday, May 9, followed by Poloche on Monday, May 13.

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  • Attorney general to give remarks at memorial service for U.S. Marshal killed in Charlotte shooting

    Attorney general to give remarks at memorial service for U.S. Marshal killed in Charlotte shooting

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    Sunday, May 5, 2024 6:03PM

    ABC11 24/7 Streaming Channel

    ABC11 24/7 Streaming ChannelWatch Eyewitness News, First Alert Weather, and original programming.

    CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WTVD) — Many will gather at a memorial service for Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas M. Weeks Jr. Monday morning.

    Weeks died after being shot by a convicted felon last week in Charlotte.

    US Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and Director Ron Davis of the U.S. Marshals Service will deliver remarks. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco will also attend.

    The U.S. Marshall and seven other officers went to serve a warrant to Terry Clark Hughes Jr, 39, believed to have illegal firearms in the 5000 block of Galway Drive in the North Tryon Division. That’s when the officers were shot at.

    Weeks and Joshua Eyer — whose memorial service was Friday — were among the four officers killed in the shootout. Four others were injured.

    The memorial starts at 10:30 a.m. at the Bojangles Coliseum on East Independence Boulevard in Charlotte.

    RELATED: Former NC Sheriff pushes for change in the wake of Charlotte’s deadly shooting: ‘I’m hurting’

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  • N.C. standoff shows how the bystander’s role is changing

    N.C. standoff shows how the bystander’s role is changing

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    CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Saing Chhoeun was locked out of his Charlotte, North Carolina, home on Monday as law enforcement with high-powered rifles descended into his yard and garage, using a car as a shield as they were met with a shower of gunfire from the direction of his neighbor’s house.

    What You Need To Know

    • A deadly shootout in Charlotte shows how smartphone-wielding bystanders don’t always run for cover when bullets start to fly

    • Saing Chhoeun was locked out of his home Monday as law enforcement entered his yard and garage. He took out his phone and started live-streaming the standoff between officials and his neighbor

    • His reaction reflects the new role that bystanders play in the age of smartphones

    As bullets flew just feet away, Chhoeun took out his phone and started live-streaming the standoff between officers and a man wanted for possession of a firearm by an ex-felon and fleeing to elude.

    By the end of the ordeal, five people — four officers and the shooter — were dead and more injured in the deadliest single-day incident for U.S. law enforcement since 2016.

    The shootout also illustrated how smartphone-wielding bystanders don’t always run for cover when bullets start to fly. Increasingly, they look to livestream their perspective of the attack. Experts say the reaction reflects the new role that bystanders play in the age of smartphones.

    “It’s become sort of a social norm,” said Karen North, a digital social media professor at the University of Southern California Annenberg.

    Humans always have had trouble defining the responsibilities of a bystander in a crisis, North said. It’s not always safe to intervene, as with the situation in Charlotte, and people can feel helpless when they’re doing nothing. Social media has provided a third option.

    The “new responsibility of the bystander” in the digital era is to take a record of what happened on their phones, she said.

    “It used to be, ‘If you see something, say something,’” North said. “Now, it’s, ‘If you see something, start recording.’”

    Chhoeun had been about to leave for work when U.S. marshals blocked his driveway and he was forced to huddle for safety in his garage, his keys in the ignition of his truck. He crouched by the door knocking for his son to let him in with one hand and recording with the other.

    Chhoeun said he never would have risked his life to shoot a video if he hadn’t been locked outside. But since he was, he thought: “I might just live it, you know, get everybody, the world to see also that I’ve witnessed that. I didn’t see that coming.”

    Rissa Reign, a youth coordinator who lives in the neighborhood, said she was cleaning her house when she heard gunfire and walked out to see what was happening.

    She began recording when she heard sirens, thinking she would share the video to Charlit, a Facebook group with 62,000 members where residents post about news and events. She had no idea how serious the situation had become until a SWAT vehicle pulled up behind her.

    “Once we were out there, it was, ’Oh, no. This is an active situation,’” she said. “And the next thing you know, you’re in the middle of something way bigger than what you thought.”

    Reign saw livestreaming as a way to keep the community informed, she said.

    “Seeing that really puts things in perspective and lets you know that is really real, not just reading it or hearing about it in the news,” she said of the livestream video. “When you really see it, you can, you know, you know that it’s real.”

    Mary Angela Bock, a media professor at the University of Texas at Austin, said there are many reasons why someone might pull out their phone in a situation like the one in Charlotte. There are always going to be people who try to shoot videos because of a human attraction to violence or to catch someone in an embarrassing situation.

    “There are also good reasons for good people to respectfully, from a safe distance, record police activity, or any kind of government activity for the sake of citizenship: to bear witness on behalf of other citizens, to bear witness on behalf of the community,” she said. “We’re all in this together.”

    Bock, who studies people who film law enforcement, said police leaders often will say to her that they support the idea of respectfully distanced citizen video because it creates more evidence. But that is sometimes easier said than done on the ground during a crisis.

    “Police officers will often talk about how, and this is true, video doesn’t always show the whole story. Video has to start and stop. Somebody might not have been there in the beginning, somebody might not see the whole thing. One perspective is not the whole perspective,” she said.

    “Which is why I advocate to people to respectfully record from a distance because the more perspectives, the better when we triangulate. When we have more than one view of a scene, we have a better idea of what happened,” Bock said.

    Numerous federal appeals courts have affirmed the right to record police work in public.

    Stephen Dubovsky, professor emeritus of psychiatry at the State University of New York at Buffalo, said for someone in that situation, connecting with others through livestreaming might give them a sense of safety.

    “You go out there and you might be at risk, but you’re looking at it through your phone,” he said. “You’re looking at it through the video, you’re one step detached from it.”

    In Chhoeun’s video, two agents can be seen sheltering behind a vehicle. Another agent is shown by a fence in his yard, dropping to the ground as what appear to be bullets spray the area around him.

    “It was so, so sad for law enforcement,” he said. “I know they are not choosing to die on my backyard, but just do their job. And that’s what happened to them, left their family behind.”

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  • Funeral service underway for fallen CMPD Officer Joshua Eyer

    Funeral service underway for fallen CMPD Officer Joshua Eyer

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    Hundred of friends, family and other law enforcement members are gathering Friday morning to honor and lay to rest Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Joshua Eyer.

    Bagpipes could be heard throughout the streets as Eyer’s casket, draped in an American flag, was carried by cassion, with one horse following behind with no rider for Officer Eyer, down E. Trade Street to First Baptist Church on S. Davidson Street.

    “The sea of officers is incredible. I haven’t seen anything like this before,” said Spectrum News 1 Reporter Estephany Escobar as she stood along the route.

    The casket was carried into the church by his father, three siblings and brothers-in-law.

    The funeral service for Eyer began around 10:15 a.m, the church filled well beyond capacity. After the service, a procession will escort Eyer to Sharon Memorial Park on Monroe Road. 

    CMPD will livestream the service, which can be viewed here.

    Along with thousands of officers, the funeral was attended by Ashley and Andrew Eyer, Joshua’s wife and three-year-old son, his parents and other members of his family, who sat in the first row, just in front of the casket. Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Chief of Police Johnny Jennings were also in attendance.

    The first eulogy was delivered by Pastor Justin Wallace.

    “We are asking why did God allow this to happen? We ask how can we walk through times of suffering?” Wallace said.

    Eyer is one of four law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty on Monday, April 29 in a normally quiet northeast Charlotte neighborhood. Four other officers were injured, but are expected to recover.

    Several members of a U.S. Marshal joint-agency task force were attempting to serve warrants on a suspect charged with possession of a firearm by a felon and two counts of eluding when the deadly shooting happened. The suspect began shooting at officers before being killed in front of the home, police said.

    Officer William “Alden” Elliott, Officer Sam Poloche and Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas Weeks Jr. also died as a result of the shooting.

    It is the deadliest attack on U.S. law enforcement since 2016, according to The Associated Press.

     

    Related

    The 4 officers killed in N.C. were tough but kind and loved their jobs, friends say

     

    Eyer, 31, had just been named one of the department’s employees of the month for April.

    “Just a few weeks ago I’m shaking his hand congratulating him for being Officer of the Month in our command center. And that’s because of his work in the community, because of his work getting guns off the street and because of how he responds to his cases and how he treats people,” Police Chief Johnny Jennings said at a news conference on Tuesday.

    “As he demonstrated yesterday, he’s the kind of officer you want to respond when you need help. He was rushing in to help a task force officer when he was taken on by gunfire,” Jennings said.

    Eyer, a native of Hackettstown, New Jersey, had served with the department for six years in the North Tryon Division and was a member of the 178th Recruit Class, according to police.

    In addition to his job with the police, Eyer served in the North Carolina Army National Guard from 2011 to 2023, when he was honorably discharged. He obtained the rank of sergeant first class and deployed overseas twice, according to the Guard. He was a military police soldier for most of his career apart from a period in 2019 when he served as a combat engineer, according to the Guard.

    Brandon Mancilla said he served with Eyer in Kuwait in 2020, where Eyer was in charge of some of his missions.

    Eyer was tough and strict, but also kind, he said.

    “I was a 19-year-old, an immature kid, but I just needed somebody who was going to be patient,” Mancilla said. “The cool thing is he realized that and would show you the right way to do things. … He talked to me almost like a father would talk to a son.”

    Officials say a procession for Poloche will begin at 3 p.m. Friday, beginning at the Mecklenburg County Medical Examiner’s Office. The destination has not been released at this time. We are working to gather more details.

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