WINTERGREEN, Va. – Flowers and words of remembrance now cover the car once belonging to Wintergreen police officer Chris Wagner.
Wagner was shot and killed Friday night while responding to a call.
The small community is shaken.
Executive director of the Virginia Association of Chiefs Dana Schrad said this is unheard of for Wintergreen.
“This is their first line of duty death,” Schrad said. “So, it’s not just a shock to the community, it’s a serious trauma that they’ve never experienced before.”
Members of the small town, reeling.
Meghan Knause works less than a minute from where the shooting took place and said she’s stunned.
“You just don’t hear about stuff like that in this area. I moved here from Northeast Pennsylvania not too long ago, and to hear about that, it was just shocking.”
Knause said summer is the off-season for Wintergreen.
[READ MORE: Maryland man charged in connection with fatal Wintergreen officer-involved shooting]
“I thought if anything like this were to happen it’d be during ski season because that’s when a lot of ... the draw of the people is really in here,” Knause said.
State police are still investigating the incident.
Maryland man Daniel Barmak has been charged in connection with the shooting.
Knause said Wintergreen will work together to move forward.
“It’s unfortunate because a lot of the draw of this area is how kind and friendly people are, and I feel like that may change things a little bit.”
Because Wintergreen is a private department, Officer Wagner’s family is not eligible for line-of-duty death benefits.
A fundraiser for the family has raised over $60,000.
To donate, click here.
