Montrose - Daily Press

MONTROSE �” Cedar Cemetery is quiet, late afternoon light reflecting off the polished granite stone marking Sgt. David Kinterknecht’s final resting place. Remnants of how the officer’s family marked what should have been his 42nd birthday May 23 still decorated the grave July 15: a faded card, flowers and a poignant note from his sister that reads, in part, “You should not be gone.”

But he is gone, torn from his family and community by a shocking act of violence that also nearly claimed two more Montrose police officers. Another milestone, a grim one, is to be marked: Today is the anniversary of Kinterknecht’s slaying.

That night

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“It was always in the back of my mind that this could happen, but of course I never thought that it would,” Kinterknecht’s widow, Kathy, said July 15.

“You pray that they come home safe every day, but you don’t dwell on it, or it will drive you crazy. You need to be supportive. I wasn’t naïve about the dangers. When we met, I was on dispatch.”

But not even her work as a police dispatcher prepared her for that knock on her door July 25, 2009. Police Chief Tom Chinn stood there, ready to take her to Montrose Memorial Hospital, where her husband of eight years and eight months lay shot to death. Two of his brother officers, Larry Witte and Rodney Ragsdale, were grievously wounded �” Ragsdale so seriously that he’s not yet back to work.

All three public servants had been ambushed by a shotgun-wielding Dennis Gurney, a man who shouldn’t have had access to firearms. After shooting the officers, Gurney committed suicide in full view of his adult son.

“I remember everything about that night,” Kathy Kinterknecht said. “I remember (Chinn) taking me to the emergency room. I went in and saw Dave and gave him a kiss. He was already gone. The rest of it is just a blur.”

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Comments

fam345 wrote on Aug 2, 2010 6:19 AM:

" We would also like to thank everyone for being supportive and encouraging to Kathy, the girls, Officers Witte and Ragsdale , and all the others struggling with this tragedy this past year. We pray for some kind of peace for all of them too. Thank you all for taking care of them and helping them through this. "




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gmafreedom wrote on Jul 25, 2010 1:02 PM:

" I would like to thank the Montrose Community for the continued support that has been shown to my sister. Kathy has represented David's life with a grace that is very hard to come by in normal circumstances. This has been an extremely hard year, and it does not get easier as time goes by. I pray daily for my sister, David's family, and for Officers Witte and Ragsdale, for some kind of peace in this world. May God bless you all. "




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