Detective Jeremiah Alan MacKay, 35, of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department was killed on February 12, 2013, during the manhunt for Christopher Dorner. Deputies were attempting to apprehend Dorner in the Big Bear area after Dorner had murdered Riverside Police Officer Michael Crain and USC Public Safety Officer Keith Lawrence and then fled to the mountains. Dorner reportedly broke into a cabin, tied up the occupants, stole a truck, and later barricaded himself in another cabin.

A prolonged shootout followed the cabin standoff, with hundreds of rounds exchanged. Detective MacKay and another deputy were critically wounded in the gunfire; MacKay was airlifted to Loma Linda University Hospital and died of his wounds. Dorner set the cabin on fire and ultimately took his own life.

MacKay had served 15 years with the department, left behind a wife and two young children, and was posthumously awarded the Medal of Valor. Are there readers who remember the Big Bear manhunt or who can share memories of Detective MacKay’s service?