Dennis Elisha LaPage, a 36-year-old Charleston Police Department officer and U.S. Navy veteran, was killed on January 19, 2002. The violence began after a three-car collision at Cannon Street and Courtenay Drive. While two nearby flight medics were rendering aid, one of the drivers, Marko Dupree Drayton, pulled a .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol and shot the medics; one medic died.

Drayton then fled and encountered PFC LaPage, who was working an off-duty security detail in uniform at a private College of Charleston dormitory. Believing the officer was looking for him, Drayton shot LaPage in the head, back, and elbow. LaPage was wearing a protective vest, but the wounds were fatal. Other officers later apprehended Drayton on Meeting Street.

Drayton, 19 at the time, faced charges including two counts of murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime; he was convicted and sentenced to life without parole. LaPage left a wife and two step-children. Does anyone have memories of LaPage’s service or the events that night that could add context?