Western Wisconsin communities mourn officers killed in traffic stop shootout: "We all feel the pain"
UPDATE: The fallen officers were identified Monday by the Barron County Sheriff's Department: Chetek PD's Emily Breidenbach, 32, and Cameron PD's Hunter Scheel, 23. What follows is a revised version of the original story.
CAMERON, Wis. - Communities in western Wisconsin are mourning Sunday after two police officers were shot and killed, along with the person they had stopped.
It happened Saturday afternoon in the village of Cameron, just about 10 minutes north of Chetek. The community says it's heartbroken.
MORE: Wis. Gov. Tony Evers: "Our hearts are heavy" after 2 officers killed in line of duty
Pastor Ned Lenhart gave an Easter sermon with a heavy heart at Living Water Church Sunday.
"Most of us pastors have been working on a message for many days because we want to say just the right thing," Lenhart said. "Then something like this happens the day before and you realize what you were planning to say no longer fits."
Just down the road from this Cameron Congregation Saturday, two police officers - Chetek PD's Emily Breidenbach, 32, and Cameron PD's Hunter Scheel, 23 - were killed in a shootout. The suspect, 50-year-old Glenn Perry, died later that day at an area hospital. It is still not clear what led up to the shooting.
MORE: Local law enforcement share condolences for fallen western Wisconsin officers
Breidenbach has ties to Living Water Church.
"A tragedy like this is something you don't see coming. It's so awful, it's so terrible that there aren't words to describe it," Lenhart said. "The pain is so deep, and because we're a small community, we're all connected to each other. So when one of us hurts, when one of us is in pain, everybody feels the pain."
Pain the church doesn't plan on facing alone.
"We're gonna go through stages. We're gonna feel pain. We're gonna feel grief. There may be anger. There's gonna be all kinds of emotions and that's OK," Lenhart said. "There's brokenness everywhere and there's pain everywhere. And as a community of faith, what we do is we pray for everyone."
Numerous people were seen Sunday approaching the memorial outside of the Chetek Police Department in tears. With only four full-time officers in Chetek, they have a very tight bond with the community. Now that number is three, and one woman said to WCCO News, "It sure doesn't feel like Easter."
"I'm feeling very emotional. This should not happen," said the resident. "You see how loved she was, you know, and still is. Never will be forgotten about."
Chetek Mayor Jeff Martin knew Breidenbach since she was a kid. He says their city is in shock.
"There is no routine traffic stop anymore," Martin said. "The locals, they love our cops. They're public servants, and to lose one of them, you know, it's like losing family."
Mayor Martin says Breidenbach worked with a therapy dog and spent a lot of time in Chetek's schools.
"That's to build bridges with kids and with people who are traumatized," Martin said. "It's gonna be a hard week for our kids."
Chetek resident Tammy Dunham wanted to pay her respects Sunday. Dunham says whenever she and Breidenbach would see each other around town, the officer was always kind and friendly, and even helped her once in a professional capacity.
"She came to my house when I had some problems. I never had to call the police before, and she was so comforting," Dunham said. "She was on my side."
"I just trust that people will hold each other a little bit tighter, and for those who are praying people, they're praying," he said.
The Wisconsin Department of Criminal Investigation is currently leading the investigation.
