Office Mark Bremer, Frederick Police Department died in the line of duty on Thursday morning when for reasons unknown he lost control of his cruiser while pursuing a suspect.
From the Frederick News-Post:
Officer Dies in On-Duty Crash
By Nicholas C. Stern
News-Post Staff
Frederick Police Department Officer Richard Mark Bremer died early Thursday after attempting to make a traffic stop in the 500 block of East South Street in Frederick.
Bremer, 39, of Myersville, crashed his police cruiser in a wooded area near train tracks while pursuing a fleeing driver.
The driver, later identified as James Franklin Sweeney Jr., 51, of Frederick, was in a dark pickup truck, according to Frederick Police Lt. Clark Pennington.
Shortly before midnight Wednesday, Bremer was monitoring traffic in the 400 block of East South Street, Pennington said.
At 11:51 p.m., Bremer began following a vehicle east for a violation. But the vehicle would not stop, Pennington said.
Bremer radioed dispatch, updating his location until his final transmission as he approached the Sagner Housing Complex, Pennington said.
Officers did not provide a length of time between Bremer's last radio contact with police and the crash.
Backup officers arrived immediately to search the area, and were directed by a bystander to the crash location, Pennington said.
They administered first aid and extinguished a small fire under the hood of Bremer's vehicle, Pennington said. Emergency medical personnel then arrived and continued first aid efforts while Bremer was being extricated from the vehicle.
Severely injured, Bremer was flown by a Maryland State Police helicopter to Washington County Hospital in Hagerstown, where he was pronounced dead, officers said.
Frederick police and sheriff's deputies searched numerous locations for the pickup and its driver, Pennington said.
Sweeney's truck was found in the parking lot of the Barbara Fritchie Restaurant on West Patrick Street. He was found in Masser's Motel nearby.
Sweeney was taken into custody on an arrest warrant related to an earlier theft charge, authorities said.
Patti Sowell, a manager at Masser's Motel, said Thursday that Sweeney had rented a room there Wednesday afternoon.
She said police showed up at about 3 a.m. Thursday, looking for Sweeney.
Sowell said she'd never seen him before. Many of her clients are construction workers, she said, and the motel is one of the cheapest in town -- a single room costs $43.60 per night.
A five-year veteran of the police department, Bremer is survived by a wife and three children. He was assigned to the patrol division.
Frederick Police Chief Kim Dine remembered Bremer as an energetic officer who loved coming to work every day.
Dine said he'd met with Bremer's parents and wife Thursday morning to express his condolences. Bremer's father told Dine that Bremer enjoyed his duties as an officer so much, he would have worked for free.
Wednesday night, when most people were in bed, Bremer was out trying to keep the city safe, Dine said. "He loved being out on the street, and that's what he died doing."
He said Bremer will be honored tonight at the Frederick Police Department's 150-year anniversary gala.
"Obviously, this tragedy is part of our 150 years," Dine said. "Clearly this will be about him and all the men and women of this department."
Mayor Jeff Holtzinger said he was notified about Bremer's death by his wife, a nurse who was working early Thursday at Washington County Hospital's emergency room.
"It's just beyond comprehension to know how bad his wife and kids must feel," Holtzinger said. "It did not have to happen."
He ordered flags in the city to be flown at half-staff.
"This was so senseless for this person to do what they have done to this officer and this family," he said.
At Fitness First, Westridge Plaza, in Frederick, where Bremer was a regular, he was fondly remember by front desk clerk Sandy Shifflett.
"He was in the gym yesterday," Shifflett said. "He was a very nice guy. He was very pleasant and very happy."
She said he was happy to give her advice for her daughter, who served in the Army as a military police officer and is considering a career as a police officer.
Bremer worked out at the gym whenever his work schedule would allow.
Police continue to investigate the crash. The Frederick County Sheriff's Office traffic unit is heading the investigation with support from the Frederick Police Department's accident reconstruction unit.
-- Staff reporters Karen Gardner, Marge Neal, Kate Leckie and Adam Behsudi contributed to this report.
[Ed Note: This post is stuck at the top all day today...new posts come in below.]
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