AOL – by Sean CarlinSCHWENKSVILLE, Pa. (AP) – Authorities released few details Wednesday in the deadly shooting of a Pennsylvania state trooper during a training exercise in suburban Philadelphia.
Lt. James Fisher called Trooper David Kedra an “excellent” trooper during a news conference outside the Skippack barracks, but declined to provide details on the shooting or the investigation. Fisher deferred to the state police press office, which also declined to provide any details.
Kedra, 26, was shot in the chest Tuesday during a yearly training exercise at the Montgomery County Public Safety Training Complex in Plymouth Meeting. He was airlifted to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Kedra is the second trooper to be fatally shot this month following Cpl. Bryon Dickson’s death in an ambush on Sept. 12.
The Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office was investigating Kedra’s death along with state police. District Attorney Risa Ferman did not immediately return a message about the case.
A 2010 graduate of Temple University, Kedra was originally from Philadelphia but recently moved to Chester County, Fisher said. He was assigned to the Skippack barracks in December 2012 following his graduation from the academy.
Colleagues said Kedra was an enthusiastic and motivated trooper who knew he wanted to get into law enforcement.
“He was extremely proud to be a Pennsylvania state trooper and he showed it,” said Trooper Derik Frymire, who worked on Kedra’s squad. “He wanted to see everything, he wanted to be a part of everything, he wanted to learn everything and those kind of qualities make an outstanding patrol trooper.”
Joe Alkus, a criminal justice professor at Temple, said his former student had visited to speak at one of his introductory classes. Alkus recalled once asking Kedra what he thought was the best day of his career.
“He says, ‘Every day is my best day because I love being a trooper,'” Alkus said.
State Police Commissioner Frank Noonan said it was with “an extremely heavy heart and deep sorrow” that he announced the death of Kedra, the 96th member of the state police to be killed in the line of duty.
“He died serving the people of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the men and women of the Pennsylvania State Police mourn his loss and extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends,” Noonan said.
Gov. Tom Corbett ordered Pennsylvania flags to fly at half-staff at the state Capitol and in Montgomery County.
http://www.aol.com/article/2014/10/01/officials-release-few-details-in-trooper-death/20970818/?a_dgi
Those barracks are about 10-15 minutes up the road from me. State police in my area even though there are 4 local stations closer. I’ll keep an ear to the ground. ..
Not too close to the ground, I hope…. you don’t want to find out who did it.
Good. They got another one of the bastards.
Haha I was thinking the same Jolly Roger! Heightened presence of stops today for sure. These guys are gonna be trigger happy
Makes one wonder if he was not training to be a F.B.I. informant or such. Has happened in the past. Strange reasons can be behind cops getting shot. But that will never be told or come out to the public.
It IS a gang and nobody likes a rat. Even these rat pos!