Allie Wenskoski, Sophomore
Sunday, January 5th, marked the first fatal police shooting of the new year and new decade. Officer Jackson Ryan Winkeler was attempting to make a traffic stop when he was shot outside of a South Carolina airport. The shooting occurred before six am at the Florence Regional Airport in Florence, South Carolina. Winkeler was just twenty six years old. The Florence County Coroner, Keith von Lutcken, pronounced Winkeler dead. Winkeler was not only a police officer but also a volunteer firefighter with the Latta Fire Department. They honored Winkeler by lowering their flag to half-staff on Sunday. One of their Fire Deputies claimed that Winkeler was loved by all and always was willing to help someone in need. He dedicated his life to saving people and restoring justice in Florence.
Police do have a suspect in their sights, thirty seven year old James Edward Bell, who fled the scene after the shooting. He was captured by police in a car lot about 12 miles south of Florence, after a brief police chase. He is expected to be charged with murder. It is unknown at the moment why Bell targeted Winkeler.
Though Winkeler is the first fatally killed officer in the line of duty of the new year, police shootings were not uncommon in 2019. Last year, 134 police officers were killed in the line of duty, and out of those, 47 were killed by a gunshot wound. The Florence County Sheriff’s Office posted an honoring post for Winkeler on their Facebook page. It read, “This morning our community has again been shocked by an act of violence directed at one of our local Law Enforcement officers. Soon after being notified of a Florence Regional Airport Police Officer being killed our SRT team was able to mobilize, apprehending the suspect a short time later. The Florence County Sheriff’s Office is here and stands ready to respond again if called to assist all local agencies if the need arises. On behalf of Sheriff Barnes and Chief Deputy Kirby we ask that the community please keep Jackson Winkeler’s family, friends, and coworkers in their prayers as they process what has occurred. They have our deepest sympathy and we will be assisting them in any way possible.”
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