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TEXT YOUR NEWS TIPS TO 440-242-1500! For home delivery, call 888-757-0727 SUNDAY MARCH 13, 2011 $1.50 • ONLINE INSIDE Advice F3 Business B1, B2, B4 Classified E1-E6 Crossword Comics Horoscope F2 Opinion A4, A5 Obituaries A6 Poker F2 Sports D1-D7 Television F2 Mostly cloudy High 44 | Low 22 OUTSIDE COMPLETE FORECAST A8 ‘ONE OF THE BEST’ ELYRIA — Tuesday marks the one- year anniversary of the tragic night Elyria police Officer Sgt. James “Jim- my” Kerstetter lost his life in the line of duty. Memories of Kerstetter’s charm, humor and public service still linger in the air and especially with those clos- est to the man described as “one of the best.” Kerstetter, then 43, was an- swering a routine distur- bance call on Monday, March 15, 2010, to an 18th Street, Elyria, home when Ronald Palmer shot him several times, accord- ing to reports. According to a report released in September by the Lorain County Prosecutor’s Office, Kerstetter was “ambushed” in a stairwell inside Palmer’s home and eventually killed in the living room of the home. Kerstetter was able to radio, “I’ve been shot, I’ve been shot,” before he died. When officers Jay Loesch and Donald Moss arrived at the scene, they shot Palmer multiple times. Palmer was outside and charged at the officers several times, despite being shot. The officers couldn’t see Palmer’s hands and were con- cerned for their own safety, the report stated. Loesch and Moss were cleared of any charges by a Lorain County grand jury in September. Garnetta Palmer, Ronald Palmer’s wife, did not return calls seek- ing comment. In the days, weeks and months fol- lowing that tragic night, the community came together and out- pouring of support was directed toward Kerstetter’s family, the Elyria Police Department and the city as a whole. Kerstetter is sur- vived by his mother and father, James and Carol; wife, Tammy; three daughters, Bailey, Misty and Shelby; sisters , Kathleen Sawyers, Kelly Strickler, and Kathy Ker- stetter. In the cozy living room in the Galaxy Drive, Elyria Township, home of James and Car- ol Kerstetter, Jimmy Kerstetter’s parents, his family is surrounded by photos from vacations, paper mobiles and oth- er crafts made by 9-year-old Bailey Kerstetter. On the wall in the far right corner is a photo collage of Jimmy. A year has passed and accepting his death hasn’t gotten easier for the fami- ly — they are still mourning, still remembering and still healing. The family will be gathering for dinner on Tuesday in memoriam of Jimmy, said Carol Kerstetter, who chooses to re- member her son for the way he lived. “This is a quote from Misty, she posts it on Facebook, ‘Life has to be lived. That’s all there is to it,’” Carol Kerstetter said. “Isn’t that a good one for all of us? So, when I get sad, I think about that ... On that day (Tuesday), I’m going to church. And then I think the kids are coming for supper ... We have Monday to think about. And the next day will be the 15th and there’s another day. And I think I choose to think about the way he lived and not the way he died.” Jimmy’s sister, Kathleen Sawyers, added, “They say time heals all wounds ... I hope I live long enough to heal from this.” Staying busy is key, said Kelly Strick- ler, another sister. The entire family went on a cruise during Christmas be- cause it “was too hard this past year,” Strickler said. “Christmas vacation was a good thing. It was good to go; we knew it Tuesday marks anniversary of Kerstetter’s death Story by KELLY METZ Photographs by ANNA NORRIS [email protected] TACOMA, Wash. — Army Col. (Dr.) Dallas Homas, a Lorain native and 1979 Admiral King High graduate, took command of the Madigan Healthcare System in a Change of Command Ceremony on March 10. Homas moved to Lorain when he was 7 years old and still calls the city home, according to Carrie Bernard, media representative for Madigan Army Medical Center, Tacoma, Wash. His parents, Ben and Kim Homas, still live in Lorain. Dallas Homas graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, in 1983. Four years later, he graduated from the Uniformed Ser- vices University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., and re- ceived his M.D. and commission into the medical corps. He was deployed to Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom and served as a command surgeon. He was also deployed to Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom, where he also served as a command surgeon. Madigan is one of the Army’s most state-of-the-art and technically ad- vanced medical centers, according to Bernard. Homas is in charge of leading the organization responsible for provid- ing world-class military medicine to more than 100,000 beneficiaries in fa- cilities located in Washington, Oregon and California. Lorain native takes command of health care system By Morning Journal Staff [email protected] Army Col. Dallas Homas took command of the Madigan Healthcare System on Thursday. SPECIAL TO THE MORNING JOURNAL Carol Kerstetter, mother of fallen Elyria police Officer James Kerstetter, laughs and smiles at her home in Elyria Township as she talks about her granddaughters and how they are coping a year later after the death of their dad. Kristeen Sawyers, left, and Kathy Kerstetter, sisters of James Kerstetter, laugh as they listen to their mother recall a funny memory about their brother a year after his tragic death in the line of duty. Kelly Strickler, older sister of James Kerstetter, and her husband, Tim, listen to their family talk about how Kerstetter’s daughters have been active and coping in the last year since their father’s death. Kerstetter Online For video with the family and an interactive timeline of events, visit MorningJournal.com See ANNIVERSARY, Page A7 12 6 9 10 11 2 3 1 7 5 4 8 Did you remember to SPRING FORWARD and set your clocks ahead one hour? UP TO $235 WORTH OF MONEY-SAVING COUPONS INSIDE Inside Today! Panthers headed to state Page C1 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 #1 in the nation in heart care for 16 consecutive years. Same-day appointments available. Call 216.44HEART. 861HZV :RUOG 5HSRUW 2010 clevelandclinic.org/heart
