Shortly after midnight Friday, red, blue and white flashing lights lit the 30-mile path from Trenton to Gainesville’s medical examiner’s office.
Two Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office deputies, who died in a shooting Thursday afternoon, were brought to Gainesville in two hearses and escorted by hundreds of patrol cars from over ten local law enforcement agencies, including Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, Gainesville Police and Florida Highway Patrol, at about midnight.
Sgt. Noel Ramirez, 30, and Deputy Taylor Lindsey, 25, were eating at Ace China restaurant, located at 1122 E. Wade St. in downtown Trenton, at about 3 p.m. when John Hubert Highnote, 59, of Bell, Florida, walked in the restaurant and shot them, Gilchrist Sheriff Bobby Schultz said. Highnote was found dead inside his car from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Responding deputies found both Ramirez and Lindsey dead from their injuries, according to a press release.
They were the first deaths in the line of duty in Gilchrist County since Sheriff Mark Read was killed in 1956 while responding to a drunk person with a shotgun, according to the press release.
At about 7:30 p.m., after notifying their next of kin, Schultz announced Ramirez and Lindsey’s names during a press conference outside the restaurant, saying nothing about the shooter’s identity.
“The world is full of cowards, and the world is full of heroes,” Schultz said. “We need to highlight those heroes.”
He went on to talk about the deputies and their experiences at the county’s sheriff’s office.
“Sgt. Ramirez and Deputy Lindsey were the best of the best,” Schultz said. “They were men of integrity. They were men of loyalty. They were God-fearing, and they loved what they did, and we are proud of it.”
Ramirez had been in law enforcement for about seven years and with GCSO for about two years. Ramirez was a husband and father with an “infectious” smile, Schultz said. He said Lindsey had worked with the sheriff’s office in the past and recently returned.
The shooting is still an active investigation, and there is no apparent motive, Deputy Chief Darry Lloyd said. The type of weapon used and how many rounds were fired have not been released, he said.
Sheriff’s offices and police departments from around the state and country, including Pasco County Sheriff’s Office, Los Angeles Police and Gainesville Police, have sent their condolences for the deputies through tweets.
“Our hearts are heavy today hearing from the Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office that they lost two of their own,” according to a GPD Facebook post. “Please keep their agency and families in the forefront of your minds.”
GPD Lt. Marc Plourde said Gainesville police officers support their fallen brothers. As the hearses drove on West University Avenue, Gainesville officers blocked intersections with their patrol cars. When the bodies were carried into the medical examiner’s office on Southwest Third Avenue, officers stood at attention.
“It’s overwhelming,” Plourde said. “This is like a brotherhood. Unfortunately, it has to be at a time like this when you see it at its strongest.”
At about 6:45 p.m. Saturday, another escort of about 100 vehicles took the deputies from the medical examiner’s office to a funeral home in Trenton, said ACSO Lt. Becky Butscher.
“That is a show of support for our fallen heroes that died in the line of duty,” said Butscher, who was part of the escort.
Drummond Community Bank opened an account for donations to the families of the deputies, and Ramirez’s father-in-law started a GoFundMe page for his grandchildren, which has raised $11,945, as of press time.
On Tuesday, a public viewing will be hosted for the deputies in Trenton, followed by a service at 11 a.m. at Bell Middle/High School, GCSO said. The burial and graveside honors will be held at 2:30 p.m. at Bronson Cemetery on Northeast State Road 24.
Contact Robert Lewis at rlewis@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter at @Lewis__Robert.
These undated photos made available by the Gilchrist County Sheriff's Office shows Sgt. Noel Ramirez, left, and Deputy Taylor Lindsey. Authorities say the two Florida sheriff's deputies were shot dead, Thursday, April 19, 2018, through the window of a Chinese restaurant in Gilchrist, Fla., by a man who then killed himself.
