SUV hits sheriff's cruiser head on; deputy killed

Kelly Jo Ivey appears in court Thursday, Oct. 30, 2014, charged in the head-on crash that killed Harris County sheriff's deputy Jesse Valdez III. Kelly Jo Ivey appears in court Thursday, Oct. 30, 2014, charged in the head-on crash that killed Harris County sheriff's deputy Jesse Valdez III. Photo: Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle Photo: Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 17 Caption Close SUV hits sheriff's cruiser head on; deputy killed 1 / 17 Back to Gallery

Working the graveyard shift isn't one that a lot of people would choose, but Harris County Sheriff's deputy Jesse Valdez III specifically sought it out. A single-father, Valdez, 32, patrolled the streets on the county's eastside from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. so he could maximize the time he spent at home raising his 10-year-old son.

But on Wednesday, the 11-year veteran of the sheriff's office did not make it home to the boy.

Only a couple of hours into his shift, while he was on his way to make a welfare check, a Ford Explorer drove into oncoming traffic, crashing head-on into Valdez's patrol car.

He died about an hour later.

"Today (Wednesday) we mourn a comrade, a friend, a brother," Sheriff Adrian Garcia said. "There are many hearts grieving tonight and my heart is heavy for his family." Authorities arrested the driver of the Ford Explorer, 29-year-old Kelly Jo Ivey, charging her with possession of a controlled substance. A blood sample was taken from Ivey, who showed signs of impairment at the scene. Authorities said results from toxicology tests will determine what additional charges may be filed.

Ivey is being held in the Harris County Jail without bond.

The crash occurred near the intersection of East Wallisville Road and Honeysuckle Street.

A patrol deputy in the District 3 division, Valdez was driving on East Wallisville around midnight, when Ivey, who was traveling west on East Wallisville, crossed into oncoming traffic and smashed into his patrol car.

Valdez's cruiser then spun counter clockwise into a drainage ditch. The patrol car was so severely damaged, authorities had to use extraction tools to remove Valdez from the vehicle. He was taken by Life Flight to Memorial Hermann Hospital where he was pronounced dead around 1 a.m.

Ivey was taken by ambulance to the same hospital and was released that afternoon into the sheriff's office custody, authorities said. An unidentified man in the passenger seat of the Explorer was treated on scene. Authorities said he has not been charged at this time.

Deputies later found methamphetamine in the Explorer. The narcotics had been put into pill form and were inside a small plastic bag that had been stuffed into the top of a perfume bottle, officials with the Harris County District Attorney's Office said.

Court records show that Ivey has a criminal history in Harris County dating back to 2008 that includes theft and forgery charges. In March, she plead guilty to possession of a controlled substance in an unrelated methamphetamine case and agreed to the two-year sentence, according to court records. Sheriff's officials said she was released from prison on parole on Oct. 2.

She is scheduled on Thursday to appear in court for her latest charge.

Valdez is the 40th Harris County Sheriff's Office employee to die in the line of duty in the agency's 177-year history. Garcia said Valdez's is also the first deputy to die in the line of duty since he became sheriff nearly six years ago.

"This is a family," Garcia said. "When you lose a member performing his job, it is never an easy occasion."

Being in law enforcement was a childhood dream for Valdez, a man described as a hard worker, who loved his son and his job. Garcia said Valdez's mother told him her son would play cops and robbers with his friends as a boy, always choosing to be the cop.

"It was law enforcement that was in his blood and that's what he did," Garcia said.

He began his career with the sheriff's office as a detention officer before becoming a deputy. Garcia said Valdez had worked in the patrol division for about two years and had recently applied to the K-9 division.

Robert Goerlitz, president of the Harris County Deputies Organization, said he met Valdez after he transferred to District 3 from another patrol division near Humble so he could be closer to home and take the graveyard shift in order to see his son more often. Goerlitz, who works as a senior field training officer in the District 3, described Valdez as having a fantastic work ethic and being full of potential.

"I mean he was just one of those guys that you were glad you got him," Goerlitz said.

Valdez was the kind of deputy they called a "good hunter," one who went beyond just writing tickets, but one who went the extra mile to look for any other illegal activity, Goerlitz said. He also said the only time Valdez was seen without a smile on his face was when he was in deep concentration during training sessions.

"You could just really tell he was paying attention to what we were teaching him," Goerlitz said. "I am still shocked by all this. It's such a waste of a man."

On Wednesday afternoon, the mood on the little east Houston street Valdez lived with his family was solemn. Cars lined the street, with people coming and going from the modest-one story home. Neighbors walked over to the house, carrying aluminum trays full of rice and enchiladas, past the front lawn where the Valdez could often be spotted playing with his young son.

One neighbor, who did not want to be identified, said her son played with Valdez's child and it was apparent how much the young boy adored his father. She said that Valdez was also well-loved by other children in the neighborhood, including her own son, who has also been affected by the news of his death.

"For a 10-year-old boy to hurt for his friends father," she said. "I mean that it really speaks a lot about (Valdez) as a person."

Dale Lezon, Brian Rogers and Gary Coronado contributed to this report.