State Police asked to investigate Chesapeake officer's death

CHESAPEAKE

The medical examiner's office has not been able to determine a cause of death or the manner in which police officer Timothy Schock died during a dive-team training exercise Tuesday afternoon.

Autopsy results were inconclusive and toxicology results are pending, according to Glenn McBride, a representative for the medical examiner's office.

Also Wednesday, police Chief Kelvin Wright announced that he has asked the Virginia State Police to investigate Schock's death.

"Their expertise in the area of underwater search and rescue will... prove valuable to this effort and we greatly appreciate their willingness to assist," Wright wrote in a statement.

Police spokeswoman Kelly O'Sullivan said it is common for the department to ask an outside agency to review cases involving accidents or deaths. Along with a member of the Chesapeake Police Department, the state police will look at the dive team's equipment and training exercises.

"There is absolutely nothing suspicious about this," O'Sullivan said. "We just want to see specifically what went wrong."

Schock, 41, was taking part in an underwater search-and-rescue training exercise at Oak Grove Lake Park when he began struggling for breath, police said.

When Schock surfaced in the lake, he told his team partner he couldn't breathe, Wright said in a statement Tuesday. The partner tried to give Schock a respirator, but he pushed the device away and went back under water, Wright said.

Fellow divers and an emergency rescue crew from the Fire Department tried to save Schock's life, Wright said, but the 16-year veteran was later pronounced dead.

O'Sullivan said Schock had spent about eight years on the department's dive team and was a U.S. Marine Corps veteran. He had a teenage son and a fiancé, she said.

Walter Gonzales, one of the owners of Fat Frogs Bike and Fitness in Chesapeake, said Schock had been a member of the store's competitive racing team for several years.

"He was a shop rat," Gonzales said. "He'd come in with a cup of coffee from Starbucks and just hang out."

Schock always had a smile on his face and a story to tell, Gonzales said. He'd reel off lines from TV shows and movies or talk about work. Recently, Gonzales said, the officer had been telling friends about the upcoming dive-team training.

An officer broke the news of Schock's death to his friends at the bike store soon after the accident, according to Gonzales.

"It kind of let us know how much the 'Frogs' meant to Tim," Gonzales said. "He talked about us so much at work that they called us."

Gonzales said the store will host a memorial bike ride for the officer in mid-January.

"His service to the community, it wasn't just part of his job; it was with everyone," Gonzales said. "He truly stood for what he was."

O'Sullivan said a candlelight vigil for Schock will take place at St. Stephen, Martyr Catholic Church, 1544 S. Battlefield Blvd., at 7 tonight. This morning, the Police Department announced that a wake/viewing will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday at HD Oliver Funeral Apartments, 1416 Cedar Road.

Sarah Hutchins, (757) 222-5210, sarah.hutchins@pilotonline.com