‘Thank you for everything’: CMPD officer dies after 28 years of service to city, school
This story was updated Friday, Oct. 8 with funeral arrangements.
Julio Herrera joined the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department 28 years ago, and now the extended family he was sworn into is mourning his death.
“It’s with a heavy heart that I share with our CLT family of Ofc. Julio Herrera’s passing,” police Chief Johnny Jennings posted on Twitter on Tuesday. “He has spent the last 28yrs serving the CLT community.”
Herrera, who died Monday, was a student resource officer at Ardrey Kell High School in south Charlotte.
“You are dearly missed,” Ardrey Kell High School’s Twitter account posted on Tuesday. “Thank you for everything Officer Herrera! The AK Community will always remember your impact.”
Ardrey Kell Principal Jamie Brooks did not immediately respond to an Observer request for comment.
Herrera is survived by his wife, Beth Gilbert Herrera, and sons Jordan, 23, and Christian, 19.
CMPD said it had no available information about Herrera’s death.
However, in a Facebook post, Beth Gilbert Herrera said her husband had “been battling COVID for about three weeks now.” Her post did not say whether Herrera had been vaccinated against the disease.
“We are all devastated and heartbroken,” she wrote.
Gilbert Herrera described her husband as a “loving, caring person,” not just to family and friends, but to many in the community. “Please pray for our family,” she said.
“Rest easy, brother. Your @CMPD family misses you greatly,” the department posted on its Twitter account on Tuesday.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Board Chair Elyse Dashew also sent her condolences.
“My heart goes out to Officer Herrera’s family, CMPD family and @ArdreyKellHS family,” Dashew said in response to Jennings’ tweet.
COVID and public safety workers
Charlotte officials disclosed last month that some 62% of nearly 8,000 city government employees are at least partially vaccinated, the Observer previously reported.
CMPD had a 63% vaccination rate among its 2,407 officers and staff, second lowest behind the 49% posted by the Charlotte Fire Department among its 1,224 employees.
Last month, a 39-year-old canine officer with the Kings Mountain Police Department died of COVID-19-related illness, the Observer previously reported. It’s unknown if Carl Proper had been vaccinated.
Kings Mountain police Chief Lisa Proctor said Proper’s death has led some fellow officers to get vaccinated, WCNC reported Monday.
A longtime Charlotte and Huntersville firefighter and his wife also died of COVID last month, the Observer reported. Jeffery Hager, a 24-year veteran, died Sept. 12 after fighting COVID for several weeks. His wife, Amee, died a week later.
In 2020 — the most recent year of complete data — COVID-19 killed at least 29 law enforcement officers in North Carolina, including sheriff’s deputies, police chiefs and school resource officers.
The virus killed about a dozen firefighters and more than 20 correctional officers, according to data from the state’s Department of Health and Human Services.
Three of those deaths — a corrections officer, school safety officer and a fire official — happened in Mecklenburg County.
Funeral arrangements
A funeral service will be held for Herrera at 10 a.m. Monday at First Baptist Church, 301 S. Davidson St., police said Friday.
Prior to the service, around 8:30 a.m., a procession will pass by Ardrey Kell High School, 10220 Ardrey Kell Road, where students and staff will honor Herrera’s 15 years of service to the school as a resource officer. The procession will continue on a route using Interstate 485, I-77 and I-277 to arrive at First Baptist Church.
Observer staff writer Gavin Off contributed.
This story was originally published October 5, 2021 at 4:53 PM with the headline "‘Thank you for everything’: CMPD officer dies after 28 years of service to city, school."
