Deputy sheriff Barbara Pill gunned down yesterday in Melboune Florida

[Baz]

No bond for accused killers in Brevard deputy shooting death | www.wftv.com

Responding to a theft report she stopped the suspect vehicle, called for backup, and while waiting was shot to death. Suspects took off and were later apprehended. The shooter, who had a record, had been "accidentally" released by the justice system so was "on the loose" when this happened.

Unbelievable.....

Here are the suspects:



Here is the shooting victim:



She leaves behind a husband and two children who are LEO plus grandchildren.

And now you know why I get peeved with speed traps when criminals like this are roaming the streets. Law enforcement and our justice system (and I use that term very loosely) need to get their priorities straight.

[Baz]

(Text from the story)


BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. —

Flags are at half-staff outside the sheriff's office on Wednesday after a 15-year veteran Brevard County deputy was shot and killed after pulling over two robbery suspects in Melbourne.

The community is mourning the death of 52-year-old Deputy Barbara Pill. She was the first Brevard County deputy killed in the line of duty in 16 years.

On Tuesday night, the two suspects were taken to jail.

Brandon Bradley and Andria Michelle Kerchner will face a judge on Wednesday. They are accused of shooting the deputy four times after she pulled them over for allegedly stealing from a motel.

Both suspects are being held without bond at the Brevard County jail. They are each facing multiple charges, including first-degree murder.

Radio transmissions reveal just how tense the moments were when authorities heard five gunshots ring out and Pill was shot multiple times on Tuesday.

"Confirmed he shot a deputy; be careful. Use caution. He's armed," an officer said over the radio. "They have officers in the south. Watch for crossfire."

Investigators said Bradley and Kerchner had stolen furniture from an Econo Lodge near 192 and I-95. Pill was trying to talk them out of their car when investigators said Bradley opened fire. Bradley and Kerchner fled, but ended up crashing their SUV in a ditch a few blocks away, where they were taken into custody.

A woman who witnessed the shooting called 911.

"Oh my God, somebody just shot this cop in my...in front of my house!" said the 911 caller.

"He did what?" replied the dispatcher.

"Somebody just shot this cop!" the caller said.

Bradley, a man deputies call a career criminal, could only muster a brief apology as he was being taken to jail.

"Brandon what do you have to say to the deputy's family?" WFTV asked.

"I'm sorry," he replied.

"Andria, what was your role in this?" WFTV asked.

"I didn't shoot the deputy; these cops is liars," said Kerchner.

Records obtained by WFTV show that one of the suspects charged with the murder should have never been let out of jail.

Since 2007, 22-year-old Bradley has had a very long arrest record, including fleeing and eluding, aggravated assault, burglary, resisting arrest, child cruelty, kidnapping, weapons charges, and 10 drug charges. He was arrested last year, but he fooled jail officials when he said he was his brother and was allowed to bond out.

Guests at the Econo Lodge motel said they saw Bradley and 19-year-old Kerchner stealing furniture before the shooting.

"She [guest's girlfriend] was pretty scared; she'd seen the look on the guy's face and turned around and came back to the room," said motel guest Chris Montesano. "She had a bad feeling about it."

Kerchner also has a record for selling drugs.

Bradley and Kerchner could face the death penalty if convicted. According to Florida's guidelines, any person who commits murder while avoiding arrest or while trying to escape is eligible for the death penalty. The law also says a person who commits murder while interfering with law enforcement can receive capital punishment.

Friends, family and the law enforcement community are mourning the loss of Pill. She was a 15-year veteran of the department, and the mother of two sons who are also law enforcement officers.

One of her sons, Ryan, was on a cruise when he found out about the shooting. The Coast Guard picked him up in a helicopter to bring him home.

Heartbroken comrades gathered to console one another outside Holmes Regional Medical Center to mourn the loss of Pill. Flags were placed at half-staff, and black stripes covered deputies' badges.

"She is the kind of person who was always engaged, always doing things, that's again why she was on this scene today. She was the first one on scene," said Brevard County Sheriff Jack Parker.

Parker said Pill did not shy away from danger, yet she was one of the nicest people you could ever meet.

"It's one thing to lose someone that you love. It's another thing to lose some that you love in this way," said Parker.

She was also a mother and grandmother. Her son Ryan is an officer with the Melbourne Village Police.

Another son, Jeremy, is also a Brevard County deputy and her daughter-in-law is a crime scene investigator.

"Her whole family is an incredible family and she is a tremendous loss to our community. She's one of those heroes behind the scenes," said Parker.

Pill spent 15 of her 30 years in law enforcement in Brevard County.

Pill's Palm Bay neighbors are equally shaken over their friend's death.

"I was crushed. I just couldn't believe it. It hit so close to home," said William Gurny, Pill's friend.

According to her closest friends, Pill was also closing in on retirement.

Brevard County residents created a Facebook page in honor of Pill. They declared Wednesday as Blue Ribbon Solidarity Day for Pill.

Gov. Rick Scott offered his condolences to Pill's loved ones, and said this tragedy should remind us of the risks taken by every member of law enforcement.

Scott released a statement Tuesday that said, in part:

"When officers lose their lives in the line of duty, it is a solemn reminder of how grateful we should all be for their service. May we always show the honor and gratitude these brave men and women deserve."

Deputy Raymond Warner was the last Brevard County deputy killed in the line of duty. He was shot and killed in June 1996 while responding to a burglary at Merritt Island High School. The suspect in that crime was shot and killed.

[HardDrive]

I'll buy the rope.

[biosurfer1]

The next time someone comes on PPOT *****ing that a LEO was aggressive or tense during a speeding ticket stop, just direct them to this thread

[Rick Lee]

I would not want to face a FL judge and jury as a cop killer. I predict needles in arms for both, if not a "shot while attempting escape" story.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by biosurfer1

The next time someone comes on PPOT *****ing that a LEO was aggressive or tense during a speeding ticket stop, just direct them to this thread

This was not a routine traffic stop.

I always carry a gun and usually tell the cop when I'm pulled over and, for some reason, they're never tense around me.

[Racerbvd]

Not starting off as a good year for LEO's, we lost one up here..


Clay County Sheriff's Office Deputy David White was killed and Detective Matthew Hanlin was wounded during the early evening raid on Thursday

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

I'll buy the rope.

And I'll build the gallows.

What a horrible tragedy.

[Esel Mann]

Originally Posted by biosurfer1

The next time someone comes on PPOT *****ing that a LEO was aggressive or tense during a speeding ticket stop, just direct them to this thread

Biosurfer, are you serious? So if I get stopped/pulled over, and the cop is aggressive and tense I should write it off? They have a right to treat me in that manner?

Whatever happened to the simple fact that this tragedy happened to a person? Being a cop is irrelevant. You do realize that bad people also go after un-armed people and kill them too! Do you not? If you do not, please share with us where you live because that's a mighty nice town where civilians are not tragically killed by bad people and I'm sure others would love to live there too!

Biosurfer, by excusing the not always appropriate behavior of someone who is in power, you are putting them on a pedestal and putting civilians, like me for example, below them.

[yellowperil]

It seems to me that you're disrespecting this officer by using this particular story to gripe about speed traps. I could be wrong, and I don't live in Fla but that is my opinion.

Actually I hope I read it wrong. This is a very sad story for that officer and her family.

[legion]

I've spent a lot of time in Melbourne. My grandparents lived there for 17 years. My aunt currently lives there. My mom used to live there. I bought my pickup truck there. I wonder where this happend? (Probably downtown?)

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Esel Mann

Biosurfer, are you serious? So if I get stopped/pulled over, and the cop is aggressive and tense I should write it off? They have a right to treat me in that manner?

Whatever happened to the simple fact that this tragedy happened to a person? Being a cop is irrelevant. You do realize that bad people also go after un-armed people and kill them too! Do you not? If you do not, please share with us where you live because that's a mighty nice town where civilians are not tragically killed by bad people and I'm sure others would love to live there too!

Biosurfer, by excusing the not always appropriate behavior of someone who is in power, you are putting them on a pedestal and putting civilians, like me for example, below them.

There is a line, but yes, if they are tense, write it off. Aggressive, depends upon what you mean by aggressive. If they pull you over for a broken tail light, pull you out of the car through the window and pistol whip you, no. But if they are tense and not being super sweet, sure.

It's unfortunately, not that uncommon for cops to get hurt or killed during routine traffic stops.

Not everyone, but a lot of people that talk about cops being rude, also talk about giving cops attitude.

[nota]

sorry she got killed

why the punk chic is charged with murder ?

and how many citizens are killed by cops vs cops killed
why is there no counts is it 1 to a 100 or more ?
not being a cop but being a citizen dead citizens worry me more

[willtel]

Not bad.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Lived in MLB for several years too - about 20 years ago. It has (or had) some nice parts and also some very sketchy and seedy parts too. Like most of Florida, it has very affluent areas and areas that are just scary, trashy, poor, etc.

The area in question - 192 near the 95 used to be pretty trashy - it had mostly highway roadside type businesees catering to travelers off the 95 - sleazy motels, gas stations, cheapo restaurants like Waffle House, etc. There were a couple of industrial parks there and a couple of strip joints. Generally speaking, the town got better the further east (towards the ocean) away from the freeway. Until you got several miles east of 95 there really didn't used to be much in the way of residential near there except for trailer parks and it got seedier and seedier the further west and south of there you got. I suspect the two people in question were from that area given where the incident went down. Typical "trailer trash". Very sad all around. Now we have more kids growing up without a mother and another spouse having to receive a folded flag. Needlessly.

I'd like to think these two will get the death penalty (FL is - or used to be - a capital punishment state). They'll probably get lots of "street cred" in prison. Cop killers always get put on a pedestal. Just an awful story and it hits home given that I have an attachment to that region...

FL in general is a weird place and there are a LOT of trashy/criminal folks around down there. My advice, stick to the touristy and pretentious areas. At least you're likely to not run into scumbags as much. YMMV. There's a reason there seems to be a huge percentage of LEOs in the population down there - for some reason it's a magnet for ne'er-do-wells.

[Esel Mann]

Yellowperil,

To be clear, Biosurfer made a comment and I simply responded. So I'm not sure where you are getting that I'm griping about speed traps. I just get pissed when someone tries to put me in a hierarchy whereby I need to excuse one behavior or another is all. Unfortunately this occurred in a post about a wonderful person, Barbara falling victim to a killer.

Yes, I also got upset with the pre-occupation of Barabara's occupation and not Barbara as a person. So if being upset about attention on a person's occupation rather than the person is disrespectful, then so be it. However you may want to consider the following:

- If you ask people, "once they're gone, what is it they want to be remembered as/by/for/etc?", you will find most will have an answer which has nothing to do with their occupation.

- Occupations don't have family or friends who need to deal with such a loss. But people do.

- Occupations don't have family or friends who have to deal with the fact that their loved one is gone but the killer is alive. But people do.

- Occupations can't fall victim to tragedies of such nature. But people do.

- Such tragedy (or very similar) has happened (in the central FL area for example) to not only cops but, cabbies, convenience store clerks, even bystanders. All differing occupations. But all wonderful people. Is there some suggestion by you perhaps that a victim of one occupation is more a victim than another occupation? I hope not.

If you understand what I am getting at above then you will understand why I was upset with Biosurfer also trying to tie in Barbara's occupation and disregarding Barbara as a person who was a victim to a killer. Occupation has nothing to do with it. For example, Yellowperil have you read up on Barbara? Yes, her occupation was as a law enforcement officer (damn good one too!) but it was just that, an occupation. There was a lot more to her than just her occupation and now the privilege of having such a wonderful person as Barbara on this F''d up planet is no longer. I would spin the table around Yellowperil and suggest that perhaps you may be the one disrespectful because all you are seeing or referring to is Barbara's occupation and not Barbara the person. Additionally I would suggest you are disrespecting all others whom have falling victim to similar circumstances by failure to recognize the personal nature of such a tragedy.

[yellowperil]

Esel Mann, my post wasn't directed at you. I just thought, wrongly I guess, that the original poster was peeved at speed traps when the real victim was the slain police officer. So my apologies to eveyone concerned.

[Joeaksa]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

I'll buy the rope.

Will be glad to pull... hard... on it. They, or at least the guy, really deserve it.

[Baz]

Regarding MY comment about speed traps.....to clear up ANY confusion and clarify my line of thought.....

In my opinion.....if law enforcement focused more on catching career criminals instead of deploying speed traps...more career criminals would be apprehended - all things being equal.

I realize speed traps generate important revenue but I'd rather they see more time spent going after the real bad guys.

No disrespect intended. This is a HORRIBLE tragedy!

[Joeaksa]

Totally agree Baz!