SHARE Jack Hopkins

By Amber Sandhu and Joe Szydlowski, Record Searchlight

Photos: Deputy Jack Hopkins procession

Local law enforcement officials met a slain comrade’s procession in Bella Vista Thursday, falling in behind as it headed into Redding and south to the Shasta County Coroner’s Office.

Modoc County Sheriff’s Deputy Jack Hopkins died instantly after being shot Wednesday responding to a domestic disturbance near Alturas, investigators have said. Just as the procession left Alturas Thursday, they named a convicted sex offender, Jack Lee Breiner, 47, as the suspect.

As the law enforcement vehicles rolled into Bella Vista, they passed under an American flag swung from an Anderson Fire Protection District ladder truck. Nearby, a few civilians watching placed their hands over their hearts, as Shasta County law enforcement vehicles left Deschutes Road and joined in the procession one by one.

In Redding, more locals – both in public safety uniforms and street clothes – lined the street.

Officials with the Redding Police Department, Shasta County Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol and Redding Fire Department joined the procession with the Modoc County Sheriff’s Department.

“This is just our way of showing respect for the sacrifice that he’s made and a chance for Redding to show their respect as well,” Redding Police Chief Robert Paoletti said.

Along Lake Boulevard, across from the Walgreens pharmacy, retired Redding police Cpl. Mike Woods, 50, stood at attention as the procession passed him and his “Back the Blue” flag.

As he and an off-duty California Highway Patrol officer saluted, Woods’ father, daughter and wife watched in somber silence, reminded of the risks Woods undertook.

“You just try not to think about it. He goes to work just like anybody goes to work. You don’t think about it until he comes home and you can breathe again,” said Deneen Woods, 50, Mike Woods’ wife. “You can’t think about it. You’ll make yourself sick.”

Woods’ daughter Danielle Taylor, 26, brought her son Nico. The day sparked strong memories for her as well.

“When he (went) to work, you’d make sure to tell him you love him before he left,” she said.

As the procession passed Woods, his father and his wife wiped the corners of their eyes. The off-duty CHP officer bit his lip and declined to comment.

On Lake Boulevard, Redding firefighters had another ladder truck flying the U.S. flag in honor of Hopkins, said Capt. Ron Utvich. As the procession weaved through Redding, firefighters from each fire station stood to honor Hopkins at various points, he said.

“In (emergency) services, we’re all kind of one big family,” he said. “I know if we had a fallen firefighter, law enforcement, they’d be out here supporting us.”

The procession honored Hopkins, 31, who was shot and killed after responding to a family disturbance call at a property near Alturas around 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. Investigators say Breiner fled the scene but was confronted by Sheriff Mike Poindexter. He was shot and is expected to survive. He’s being treated at a Redding hospital.

Shasta County Undersheriff Eric Magrini said Modoc County officials reached out to Shasta County because they have a forensic pathologist on staff at the coroner’s office.

By 1 p.m., Hopkins’ body arrived at the coroner’s office on Breslauer Way. Shasta and Modoc county officials lined up in front of the coroner’s office and saluted as Hopkins’ body, which was covered in an American flag, was taken away. Magrini laid a rose by Hopkins’ feet.

Officials exchanged hugs and consoled one another, some shedding tears.

Sgt. Mike Main of the Modoc County Sheriff’s Office said he’d always remember Hopkins as a “guy with the highest level of integrity” and “good moral character.”

“He was a good friend, good law enforcement officer,” he said. “And he meant a lot to all of us and we’re all hurting.”

Live updates from earlier in the day follow:

Update 1:28 p.m.

Law enforcement officers consoled each other in front of the Shasta County Coroner's Office as the procession bringing Hopkins' body ended there about three hours after it began in Alturas.

Update 12:56 p.m.

Arriving on Lake Boulevard, the procession is now moving toward downtown Redding. Law enforcement vehicles that met it in Bella Vista followed into town.

Update 12:39 p.m.

The procession has passed through Bella Vista and will arrive in Redding shortly on Highway 299. Road closures are expected in Redding as the procession turns south on Market Street and heads through Downtown, starting at Market Street and Trinity Street at the north end and at least to Yuba Street on the south.

Market Street downtown is also closing to southbound traffic.

Law enforcement officers and members of the public lined the roads to greet the procession in Bella Vista, and as it passed people stood in the crowd with their hands over their hearts.

Update 12:28 p.m.

The procession is about to arrive in Bella Vista, where members of public safety professions and the public will pay respects as it passes on toward Redding.

We have reporters, photographers and videographers stationed along the route and will be bringing you live updates, photos and video. Scroll down for specific information about the route.

Update 12:10 p.m.

The procession for Modoc County sheriff's deputy Jack Hopkins is expected to arrive in the Redding area at about 12:30 p.m.

Local law enforcement will meet the procession in Bella Vista at My-T-Fine Foods, Shasta County Undersheriff Eric Magrini said.

From there, the procession will head west on Highway 299, then turn onto North Market Street to California Street in downtown Redding, then to South Market Street to Breslauer Way, arriving at the Shasta County Coroner's Office.

Follow along with live coverage of the precession below or at http://scrbliv.me/2368136.

Update 10 a.m. Thursday

The body of Modoc County sheriff's deputy Jack Hopkins will be transported to Redding today.

The Modoc County Sheriff's Office said Hopkins' body will leave Modoc County at about 10 a.m. after passing through Main Street in Alturas.

From there, the procession will move to Highway 299 toward Redding, the Sheriff's Office said on Facebook.

The procession should arrive in Redding at about 12:30 p.m. via Highway 299, then turn onto North Market Street. From there, the procession will go on to California Street in downtown Redding, then to South Market Street to Breslauer Way.

Local law enforcement will meet the procession in Bella Vista at My-T-Fine Foods, Shasta County Undersheriff Eric Magrini said.

The Shasta County Coroner's Office is conducting Hopkins' autopsy.

Law enforcement, emergency responders and the public are intived to view the procession in honor of Hopkins, according to the Sheriff's Office.

Original story

The Modoc County sheriff’s deputy who was shot and killed while responding to a disturbance call near Alturas was identified tonight by the sheriff’s office.

He was identified as Jack Hopkins, 31, who has worked as a deputy there since 2015.

"He leaves behind extended family and co-workers who will miss him," a sheriff's office spokesman said.

"The Modoc County Sheriff’s Office is overwhelmed with the outpouring of support and generosity for all of the sheriff’s office staff," the statement added. "Please continue to keep our law enforcement community and first responders in your prayers and respect the family’s and law enforcement’s privacy."

The officer is the second Modoc County law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty since 1901.

A suspect in the deputy's killing was arrested Wednesday, the sheriff's office said.

The violent killing shocked and saddened residents of the rural northeastern California county.

“Things like this don’t happen in the community,” said Miguel Castro, 55, of Alturas.

Castro, a 12-year resident whose family owns and operates Harold’s Frosty burger joint on Main Street, said his heart goes out to the officer’s family, as well as to the entire law enforcement community.

“It’s sad,” he said, noting that he has a number of law enforcement customers.

But, he said, he has yet to learn the name of the deputy who was killed.

A video of a procession this evening in Hopkin's honor and memory was posted on the Modoc County Sheriff's Office Facebook page.

Deputies were responding around 10:30 a.m. to a call on County Road 115 about 10 miles south of Alturas when Hopkins was fatally shot.

The California Highway Patrol, the Alturas Police Department and the U.S. Forest Service also responded to the scene after a call about an officer-involved shooting went out, the sheriff’s office said.

The suspect, who has not been identified, was arrested shortly afterward, the sheriff’s office added. It did not say if the suspect may have been wounded.

A sheriff’s spokesman said Wednesday evening that additional details about the shooting are expected to be released around 10 a.m. Thursday when the office holds a news conference in Alturas.

Meanwhile, the shooting is being investigated by the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol, the sheriff’s office said.

The Modoc County Sheriff’s Office said earlier in the day in a brief statement that the deputy was involved in an active-shooter incident, but it did not release any other details.

County government offices in Alturas were placed under lockdown in the morning after the initial reports of the shooting.

Modoc County Administrator Chester Robertson said he was locking down all government facilities in the Alturas area, but he had no further information about the incident.

The deputy killed is the fourth law enforcement officer in California to die in the line of duty in the past two weeks. The slaying comes after two Palm Springs police officers were shot to death during a domestic disturbance call and a Los Angeles County sheriff’s sergeant was shot and killed in the high desert town of Lancaster while answering a burglary call.

The Modoc County deputy is the second Modoc County law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty in 115 years.

According to a California law enforcement memorial website that lists the names of officers killed in the line of duty, Constable Herbert Scott Walker was shot and killed May 12, 1901.

Walker, 31, was shot and killed after joining the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office in a manhunt for two escaped prisoners.

As the posse came upon the prisoners, a gunfight ensued and Walker was shot in the left hip. He died the following day.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.