A Bristol Tennessee Police Officer Dies in the Line of Duty. Brian Mills News Channel 11 Nov 28, 4:42 PM EST
Parishners at Kingsport’s Salvation Army try to comfort Captain Steve Terry over the death of officer Mark Vance.
“He just loved police work and I knew him for many years”, says Steve Terry.
Terry retired several years ago from Bristol P.D. to serve a higher calling, he remembers Vance, who was a former marine, as a man who made a difference in so many lives.
“Mark will always be remembered as a good young officer and a motivated person always wanted to help people and to help in this community, says Steve Terry.”
It was with this compassion for others that Vance answered last night's domestic violence call. But a gunshot to his head ended any chance of a peaceful outcome. Police say Nickolus Johnson shot Vance at point blank range.
“ Now while Bristol P.D. is devastated by the loss of one of their own, neighbors tell me they too are in disbelief over what happened here last night”, says Reporter Brian Mills.
“ Here we are in a nice neighborhood just living our daily lives for something like this to happen across the street it is a shock”, says John Arrants a neighbor.
Police officers say responding to a domestic violence call is considered by many to be one of the most dangerous calls to make.
“ We just never had anything like that happen here and it’s just heartbreaking”, says Irma McReynolds a neighbor.
Last night's shooting tragically proves just how dangerous a police officers job can sometimes be.
Officer: "We're all one family" BY MATTHEW LAKIN BRISTOL HERALD COURIER Dec 3, 12:00 AM EST
With hundreds of fellow officers saluting, Bristol Tennessee Police Officer Mark Vance is carried from the hearse at the cemetary in Abingdon VA Thursday afternoon. Vance was shot and killed while responding to a call Saturday night.
BRISTOL, Tenn. – The police officers came from everywhere Thursday – whether close to home or far away.
Some knew Mark Vance as a friend and brother officer. Others never even met him.
Officers Mike Carroll and Shane Hollingsworth came 575 miles to show their respect.
As members of their police department’s honor guard in Kendallville, Ind., they see more than their share of officers buried. Neither knew Vance, but that didn’t make it any easier.
"You feel the same pain," Carroll said. "It’s weird, but you do."
The trip was worth it for both.
"He was part of the brotherhood," Hollingsworth said. "We’re all one family."
Mike Yaniero, the city’s former deputy police chief, left his new post as police chief in Jacksonville, N.C., to attend the services. He knew Vance as an officer who stood out for his quiet dedication.
"He had a certain amount of gentleness that’s rare," Yaniero said. "It makes a police officer really compassionate."
Nearly all of Vance’s fellow Bristol officers made it to the service, with Tennessee state troopers, Sullivan County sheriff’s deputies and police officers from Kingsport and Jonesborough filling in for them.
City police Officer Dennis Ley worked with Vance on the night shift. He and other officers spent the afternoon gluing decals with Vance’s name and badge number to their rear windshields.
They plan to sell the decals to raise money for his family.
"It’s just a way to make sure he’s never forgotten," Ley said.
A busload of nearly 40 students from the police academy at Walters State Community College in Morristown came to view the ceremony – just a few days before their graduation.
"It’s out of respect," said Bill Gorman, the academy’s assistant director and a former Massachusetts State Police detective. "It also brings a sense of reality to them about the dangers of police work."
For Gorman, who remembers Vance as a student, it was different.
"This is a little bit tougher when it’s a guy you’ve trained," Gorman said. "We tell them when they train with us, our fingerprints are all over them. When you lose one, you lose a piece of yourself."
The sight made the students grieve. But it didn’t turn them away from the life they’ve chosen.
Mike McCoy, a member of the class, started work as a Bristol officer in September. He had just gotten to know Vance when the officer was killed.
"This hasn’t changed my mind," McCoy said. "Not everybody can do this kind of work. It’s just something that you’re called to do.
"This just makes me remember that he didn’t die in vain."
ma police, boston ma police, massachusetts police, massachusetts police, mass state police, mass police, ma, mass, massachusetts, massachusetts, massachutes, massachusetts law, massachusetts polece, police, officer, police officer, cops, police gear, law enforcement, police duty gear, state police, sheriff, law, police supply, police agency directory, police agency, police department, traffic officer, police dept, state trooper, dispatcher, massachusetts county sheriff, massachusetts sheriff, massachusetts department of corrections, ma doc, doc, dept of corrections, police information, civil service, ma civil service, massachusetts crime, police training, police academy, ma police academy, massachusetts officers, masscop, masscops, mpa, bpa, ibpoa, police association, massachusetts police news, massachusetts crime news, mass most wanted, police career information, police patrol, police administration, police books, crime scene training, police discussion, crime discussions, cops
About MassCops, the home for Massachusetts law enforcement.
The Massachusetts Law Enforcement Network opened in 1998 and is now a part of the New England Police Network The site is a pro-police discussion forum intended for sworn police officers and civilian law enforcement officials as well as those interested in pursuing a career in law enforcement here in Massachusetts.
The goal of The Massachusetts Law Enforcement Network is to provide an informal network of law enforcement officials here in Massachusetts for educational and informational purposes.
The forum covers many topics such as Police Related News Articles, Agency & Profession Discussions, Police Training as well as Law Enforcement Career Information.
The Massachusetts Law Enforcement Network and The New England Police Network (NEPN) and it's network sites are privately owned websites/domains and are not affiliated with or endorsed by any government association or agency.
MassCops (masscops.com) and (masscop.com) are privately owned are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Massachusetts Coalition of Police (masscop.org)
ma police, boston ma police, massachusetts police, massachusetts police, mass state police, mass police, ma, mass, massachusetts, massachusetts, massachutes, massachusetts law, massachusetts polece, police, officer, police officer, cops, police gear, law enforcement, police duty gear, state police, sheriff, law, police supply, police agency directory, police agency, police department, traffic officer, police dept, state trooper, dispatcher, massachusetts county sheriff, massachusetts sheriff, massachusetts department of corrections, ma doc, doc, dept of corrections, police information, civil service, ma civil service, massachusetts crime, police training, police academy, ma police academy, massachusetts officers, masscop, masscops, mpa, bpa, ibpoa, police association, massachusetts police news, massachusetts crime news, mass most wanted, police career information, police patrol, police administration, police books, crime scene training, police discussion, crime discussions, cops