EDGEWATER − Some 150 people paid a somber tribute about 48 hours after David Jewell, an Edgewater police officer, was shot and killed while he was off duty, buying a hot dog at a convenience store.
As the mourners began to go their separate ways on Sept. 17, Jewell’s partner stepped up to a group of cameras and microphones and attempted to find some meaning, some message, in what had struck many as a senseless, violent tragedy.
“It sucks,” Officer Trevor Gray started. “You see a lot of bad things about cops, but obviously … you’ve got a prime example: Officer Jewell is not one of those guys. He’s one that went above and beyond and … did the job he loved.
“We come out here; we do our best,” Gray said. “But I think Jewell was the one that was probably above all of us.”
Jewell, 45, lived in unincorporated Ormond Beach with his wife and father-in-law. He worked at the Edgewater Police Department for two years. He previously worked with the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office as a telecommunicator and as a reserve officer with the Lake Helen Police Department.
Edgewater Mayor Diezel Depew said the entire community is grieving Jewell’s loss and described this week as “a terrible time” for the city.
“Officer David Jewell gave his whole, entire adult life to public service,” Depew said. “It was, ‘What can I do for the community?’ and ‘What can I do to help our individuals?’ He was often known as the kind cop in our community.”
What happened to David Jewell?
Jewell drove with his father-in-law to the Circle K gas station in Ormond-by-the-Sea at 4:08 p.m. to get a hot dog, Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said.
Eduardo Felipe Labrada Machado, a 24-year-old clerk at the store, walked out to get a jacket from his car. Machado returned with a Glock 20 handgun and fired one full clip, 12 shots, then reloaded and fired another dozen bullets into Jewell’s face and neck area from near range, Chitwood said.
Investigators later found the gun inside a jacket on the back seat of Machado’s car, according to the sheriff’s office.
Machado had been diagnosed in the past with a mental health disorder, and had also “indicated he was hearing voices,” according to his family members, the sheriff’s office stated.
Machado is charged with first-degree, premeditated murder. He is being held without bond.
Officer opens up about losing a partner and friend
Gray got to know Jewell six years ago when both men worked in Lake Helen. When Jewell landed a full-time job as an Edgewater police officer nearly two years ago, he convinced Gray to apply.
“I was hesitant at first, but Jewell kept pushing and pushing, so I finally put in an application. I met him up here to turn the application in, came outside to talk to him and I got a call for an interview that day, so he obviously put in a good word,” Gray told reporters after the tribute event.
They became zone partners and good friends.
“If I wasn’t logged in at a certain time, he would call me and say, ‘Hey, you good?’ I slept through an alarm one time. Actually, my phone went dead, and he found a way to get my wife’s number to contact me to make sure I was OK, and make sure I was getting up for work.”
Gray said the news of his partner’s death seemed unreal.
“In your mind, it’s like a joke. It’s a sick joke, but it’s a joke,” he said. “But then when I actually got the word, I called my mom. It was sad. It hurt. He was a good friend.”
Gray said he’s never heard of a complaint about Jewell or saw him get angry. Jewell’s death, he said, leaves him with a personal challenge.
“I think I need to be the cop that he was,” Gray said. “He’s one of those guys that more cops need to take after.”
‘Devastated’ police department copes with loss
During the memorial, officers bowed their heads and folded their hands as Edgewater resident Brandy Barber sang, “Amazing Grace.”
City Councilman Eric Rainbird said he remembers Jewell as somebody who didn’t seek attention or glory, but his death has been felt profoundly by his fellow Edgewater police officers.
“The guys are devastated,” Rainbird said. “For somebody who’s only been here for two years, he left quite an impression.”
Gray said Jewell − who was in his 40s − landed a job he had long coveted and one that inspired him to become “a whole new person.”
One way Jewell had fun with his colleagues, Gray said, was to play with the horn in his cruiser.
“Any time I’d walk by the car, he’d press it and it was loud; it would scare me,” he said. “That was his thing. Like, every time, I never got sick of it. It was funny every time.”
Faith messages: ‘Thanksgiving for the life of Officer Jewell’
Pastor John Marsh of Bella Vista Baptist Church in Edgewater said he met Jewell responding to calls to the church twice and found him to be a “sweet guy.” Marsh spoke of the 23rd Psalm, which starts “The Lord is my shepherd.”
It’s a reflection on God’s grace and − with the line, “the valley of the shadow of death” − eternal life.
“Our Father and our God, we thank you for your grace. We thank your love. We thank you for your mercy,” Marsh prayed. “We thank you for the life of David Jewell, who lived his life in service to his fellow man. And we thank you, Father, for his courage and his desire to make the world a better place.”
State Rep. Chase Tramont, pastor at Oceanway Church in New Smyrna Beach, said the reason why evil exists and tragedies occur is unknowable, but there are always silver linings.
“You think about how many people who have lost their lives on a battlefield, alone, and throughout all of history, and how people have left this Earth, and so many times you hear nothing about them,” he said. “I look around here and I see Officer Jewell is not forgotten. It’s clear that he made and impact while he was here on this Earth.”
Tyler Peacock, pastor of Relationship Alliance Church in Edgewater, said he is praying that the community will experience the “shalom, the wholeness and the peace” found in God.
“I encourage you to continue to give thanksgiving for the life of Officer Jewell,” Peacock said. “As you go forth from here, don’t just let the city hold him in remembrance. Hold the positives. Hold the memories, the laughs, the jokes and bring them in thanksgiving and praise to the Lord.”
Candlelight vigil at Edgewater church scheduled
Jewell’s coworkers have started a GoFundMe and a Meal Train fundraiser to help his family. More than $50,000 had been raised by the end of Sept. 17.
Depew said the community support for the police department and Jewell’s family couldn’t be stronger.
“This community will never forget him,” Depew said. “We will always honor this individual. He will never be forgotten.”
A candlelight vigil for Jewell is also planned for 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 19 at Edgewater Alliance Church, 310 N. Ridgewood Ave.
− Staff Writer Frank Fernandez contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Edgewater police officer shot dead recalled by partner as one who ‘went above and beyond’
Reporting by Mark Harper, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
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