The Virginian-Pilot
©
CHESAPEAKE
Jim Shivers was about to bury his son when a woman he didn't know walked up. She told him Jarrod Shivers had saved her life when he arrested her for driving drunk.
"All she said was he was so nice to her and so kind and helpful," Jim Shivers said. "She credited him with giving up the booze and getting her life together."
Jarrod Shivers died more than three years ago; his killer will be in prison for at least five more years. Through it all, Shivers' family and friends still find ways to keep him alive in their thoughts.
But in the quiet moments of the day, the pain that comes from losing a child still creeps back into Jarrod's father's consciousness.
"You can be doing the most inane thing, and something will trigger a memory of Jarrod, and you cry a little bit," Jim Shivers said in a phone interview Thursday. "But then, you go on."
Slowly, with time, the family is recovering from Jan. 17, 2008, when a bullet fired from inside a house struck Shivers, a member of the Chesapeake Police Department's SWAT team. He was 34 years old with a wife, Nicole, and three children.
The shooter, Ryan Frederick, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter, and he also was convicted of marijuana possession.
Jarrod was the department's ninth officer killed in the line of duty.
"As a parent, you never get over it completely," Jim said. "No parent should ever have to bury a child, for whatever reason, and it happens too often. You try to make the best out of the situation."
Jim remembers an energetic little boy who couldn't sit still for 10 minutes. When Jarrod was young, he volunteered as a firefighter before embarking on a path that would steer him toward law enforcement.
Jarrod joined the Navy after high school because he wasn't quite ready for college.
He worked on two aircraft carriers during his eight years in the Navy.
Then he joined the Police Department in 2000 and worked his way up to detective.
"I think he really enjoyed catching the bad guys," Jim said. "I think he liked the adrenaline rush."
Jim said he visits his son's wife and his grandchildren whenever he can.
"It's been a tough go on her, learning how to be a single mother," he said. "She's adapted pretty well. She has her family down there. She gets support from us whenever we can. I think all in all, she's getting back into life and moving forward."
Veronica Gonzalez, (757) 222-5208, veronica.gonzalez@pilotonline.com
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Can anybody tell me What this police officer died for?
I think the use of force to enter premises unknown and face unknowns behind the door is plain crazy and not heroic. As we have seen in the last few months we have lost multiple LEO's around the country. In several cases a federal LEO was with a local LEO and they were knocking on the doors of very wanted felons. In three cases in the last 6 weeks the felons answered the door with guns blazing and 5 LEO's have died.
I'd say a different approach is in order to apprehend wanted felons. I'd say the days of being cowboys and tough guys will only end when their are enough dead bodies in the ground. There are much better ways to apprehend and effect search warrants and kicking in doors should only be used in the last resort.
Believe me, those of us that
Believe me, those of us that love and support Ryan also grieve for the loss of Jarrod Shivers; a husband, a father, a hero that put his life on the line everyday. We pray for his family as well, including Ryan Frederick himself! I know because I go see him every weekend to visit him and let him know he's loved and supported too! All I'm saying is this tragedy could have been avoided had this raid been handled differently. Learn from your mistakes Chesapeake Police and make sure this doesn't ever happen again! It could have been easily avoided had they handled it differently. Ryan thought someone was breaking into his home again, since 3 days before, someone had. RIP Jarrod Shivers, forever and always...
Comment deleted?
Please explain why my comment was deleted when all I said was that I grieve for Ryan Frederick being railroaded for police mistakes. How is that a personal attack? Pilot, where is your journalistic integrity?
Complete power corrupts completely
There is at least one moderator out there that will block you if they don’t like your opinion. See how long this stays up. They need to do their own internal investigation.
The only person I feel bad about. .
Is Ryan Frederick. I could not imagine being in prison under trumped up charges but an inept police department. It's a travesty.
Apparently, David,
the jury of "poor Ryan's" peers did not share your sentiments - after a fair trial, he was found guilty, was sentenced to prison time for his crime, and, if the comments offered in this thread by the poster identifying herself as "poor Ryan's" sister are to be believed, is destined to spend the next few years as a guest of the Commonwealth of Virginia prison system.
Travesty for some, perhaps - justice for others.....
What a copout
Wasn’t at the trial but this man should have been found guilty of capital murder or nothing. I assumed it was a plea bargain until now. This man either knew he was killing a cop, which I seriously doubt, or he just made a mistake trying to protect himself and his home which compounded the police’s first mistake.
Rooster, so far you have
Rooster, so far you have managed to only dance around the subject, rather than chide everyone else's opinion maybe you could express your own particulars on the case.
Ed, If My Position Is Not Obvious
by now, I'm apparently not an effective communicator; I knew coming in, however, based on the subject matter, I'd be playing before a tough crowd....
My challenge stands.
My challenge stands.