Virginia State Police salute as a hearse passes while over a dozen law enforcement agencies escort of the bodies of Bridgewater Police Officer John E. Painter and Bridgewater Safety Officer J.J. Jefferson from Virginia Department of Forensic Science, Western Office Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022, in Roanoke, Va. The slain officers’ bodies were being transported from the medical examiner’s office in Roanoke to funeral homes in Bridgewater area. (Scott P. Yates/The Roanoke Times via AP)
RICHMOND, Va. (AP/WRIC) — Hundreds of police officers are expected to attend a memorial service for two officers who were fatally shot last week when they responded to reports of a suspicious man on the campus of a private college in Virginia.
Bridgewater College campus police officer John Painter and campus safety officer J.J. Jefferson were killed on Feb. 1 when a gunman opened fire on them after a brief interaction.
Alexander Wyatt Campbell, a 27-year-old former student at the college, has been charged with murder.
A spokesperson for Gov. Glenn Youngkin said he plans to attend the service. It is being held at the Atlantic Union Bank Center on the James Madison University campus in Harrisonburg. Corinne Geller, a spokesperson for Virginia State Police, said between 1,500 and 2,000 people are expected.
You can watch the service live on Bridgewater College’s YouTube channel at 11 a.m.