HUDSON, Wis. — Community members gathered Friday at Hudson High School to pay their respects to a St. Croix County Sheriff's deputy who was killed during a traffic stop Saturday, May 6.
A public visitation for 29-year-old Deputy Kaitie Leising began at 9 a.m., followed by a funeral service with law enforcement at noon. A procession followed around 3 p.m. It left Hudson High School on Wisconsin Street and headed south on 11th Street and then east on Crest View Drive. It ends at Highway 63 and County Road N.
Speaking for Roger Stevens, Katie's father, a law enforcement officer told the crowd at the funeral, "She always wanted to be in law enforcement. She pursued that profession with the same zest she had for life. Her career moves were tough on Mom and I... only soothed by the realization as she was doing what she loved to do with the person she loved, Courtney."
Speaking on behalf of Kris Stevens, Katie's mother, a law enforcement officer said, "We ask that in the midst of our shattered lives that we live the way she did. Be kind... compassionate. Take time to really see people because you never know where your next blessing will be. The impact of your kindness will impact someone else."
Deputy Leising was dispatched around 6:15 p.m. Saturday on reports of a suspected drunk driver stuck in the ditch. Upon arrival, Deputy Leising located the driver of the vehicle and people in another vehicle that had stopped to help.
Officials say Leising requested that the individual, now identified as 34-year-old Jeremiah Johnson, take field sobriety tests before he returned to his vehicle.
According to a press release, Johnson was evasive in responding to Leising's requests, and after eight minutes of dialogue, turned toward the deputy and shot her. After she was shot, the deputy fired her weapon three times. None of the bullets hit Johnson as he fled to a nearby wooded area, according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI).
Bystanders who had originally stopped to help the suspect jumped in to perform lifesaving measures on Leising before she was taken to a local hospital.
Additional law enforcement swarmed to the scene and began searching through the woods to find Johnson. Officials said about an hour after Deputy Leising had been shot, an officer spotted Johnson, heard a gunshot and saw him fall to the ground. A handgun was found near him.
"For reasons we will probably never know, this ethically challenged, morally bankrupt criminal decides to turn and murder Kaitie," Knudson said. "That stunned us, our community and our law enforcement profession."
"It has been a whirlwind of emotions," said St. Croix County Sheriff Scott Knudson told reporters earlier this week. "Kaitie was out there doing the job officers do every day."
A memorial fund has been set up to support Leising's surviving wife and child. If you'd like to contribute send donations made out to "Benefit of Deputy Leising" to WESTconsin Credit Union, PO Box 269, New Richmond, WI 54017. Contributions can also be made in person at any WESTconsin Credit Union branch.
To protect donors from potential scammers, sheriff's officials currently do not have a link set up for online donations.