Community mourns, honors Vancouver police Officer Donald Sahota

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Residents and law enforcement members gathered Tuesday morning to honor Vancouver Police Department Officer Donald Sahota, who was fatally shot Jan. 29 during a manhunt for an armed robbery suspect.

A procession of law enforcement vehicles, red and blue lights flashing in the fog, started at Crossroads Community Church on Northeast 78th Street about 10:30 am and headed toward ilani casino where a service began at 1 pm

A small crowd of people gathered on the Pioneer Street overpass in Ridgefield to wait for the processional on its way to ilani. Drivers passing on Interstate 5 honked at the people, who flew several US flags and Blue Lives Matter flags. A Clark-Cowlitz Fire & Rescue truck parked behind the people on the overpass.

Tricia Davis of Battle Ground brought her flags to the overpass to honor the officer she said she had the pleasure of meeting. She described Sahota as a “wonderful, gracious man.”

Although she knows many of those who lined the Interstate 5 overpasses on the chilly morning didn’t know the Sahota family personally, she said it’s nice to see the community come together for them.

“It’s the least I could do,” she said.

The sun broke through the clouds in time for Sahota’s motorcade and the single-file line of hundreds of law enforcement vehicles to pass the Pioneer Street overpass around 11 am

As Dale Lowrie shielded his eyes from the rays, he noted, “the sun is shining for him.”

Lowrie and his wife, Carol, recalled their family members and friends in law enforcement and they paid their respects to the Sahota family from the overpass this morning.

Law enforcement vehicles – police cars, ambulances and fire trucks from all over the Northwest – along with residents parked all along the route. Some watched from cars; others stood on the side of the road waving flags as the vehicles passed. As the procession passed underneath the Pioneer Street bridge, fire crews stood at attention atop a fire engine.

Jannette Huber, a volunteer with the Ridgefield Police Department, said the procession and memorial ceremony can help the public process their own grief over the loss of a fellow community member.

“It gives you a place to put it all,” she said of the emotions many felt this morning. “It hits you, just as a person.”

Memorial ceremony

Although Sahota was off duty when he was killed the night of Jan. 29, Vancouver Chief James McElvain said the shooting was the department’s first line-of-duty death since the agency’s inception in 1883.

“I’m truly devastated by the loss of Don. I have no words to fill the void that he has left behind, other than I am so sorry for our loss, ”McElvain said during the memorial ceremony.

McElvain said Sahota’s mother shared that her son wanted to be a police officer since he was a little boy. He just wanted to help people.

“Don was a helper. To borrow a quote from Mr. Rogers, he stated, ‘When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping. ‘ While the situations might not always have been scary, Don was always there helping, ”McElvain said.

Sahota was the third officer McElvain hired after joining the department, he said.

“Being a police officer means sacrifice and time away from family to serve others,” McElvain said. “Don dedicated nearly 28 years of his life to law enforcement.”

Sahota joined Vancouver police in April 2014. He worked in patrol, served as an emergency vehicle operations instructor and an armorer, and was most recently assigned to the training unit, according to the department. Prior to that, he worked as a police officer for the Gresham, Ore., Police Department and Port of Portland Police Department.

Those looking to make donations to the Sahota family can continue to donate at any Chase bank branch by referencing the Officer Sahota Memorial Fund. Cards or letters for the police department or Sahota’s family can also be mailed to Vancouver police’s headquarters at 605 E. Evergreen Blvd., Vancouver, WA 98661.

The memorial is being live-streamed at bit.ly/Sahotamemorial.

Shooting details

Sahota, 52, was mistakenly shot at his home near Battle Ground by Clark County sheriff’s Deputy Jonathan Feller during a manhunt for a robbery suspect. Feller was placed on critical incident leave, standard procedure in a use-of-force incident, according to the Lower Columbia Major Crimes Team from Cowlitz County, which is investigating the shooting.

Clark County deputies were pursuing a robbery suspect, identified as 20-year-old Julio Cesar Segura of Yakima, from Orchards to Battle Ground, before the man ran from his immobilized car to Sahota’s house.

Sahota’s wife called 911 to report that a stranger had pounded on her family’s front door asking for help because he’d just crashed his car. The man, later identified as Segura, matched the description of the robbery suspect, investigators said.

She also told dispatch her husband was an off-duty police officer and was holding Segura at gunpoint, according to court records.

According to a preliminary report, the men began struggling in the driveway. Sahota lost control of his firearm, and Segura stabbed him at least three times in the torso before breaking free and running toward Sahota’s house, according to investigators and court records.

When Feller and at least two additional law enforcement officers arrived, Sahota had regained control of his firearm and was chasing Segura, who was still armed with the knife, as he tried to force his way into the home, investigators said.

This story will be updated.

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