Officer Killed In Virginia Beach Grew Up In South Jersey

VIRGINIA BEACH, VA — One of the officers killed in the line of duty last week in Virginia was a South Jersey native.

Officer Christopher Reese grew up in the region before moving to Virginia for college, according to nj.com. He had served the Virginia Beach Police Department since July 2022.

Reese and his colleague, Officer Cameron Girvin, were fatally shot during a traffic stop on Friday in Virginia Beach, authorities said. Reese was 30, and Girvin was 25.

Reese lived in several South Jersey towns but spent the longest period of his childhood in Somerdale, according to nj.com. His father — George Reese, IV —is a retired Camden City police officer.

After graduating from Sterling High School in Somerdale, Christopher Reese attended college in Virginia. He graduated from Virginia Wesleyan University in 2017.

Reese went on to become a deputy for the Virginia Beach Sheriff's Office before joining the city's police department.

On Friday, Reese and Girvin stopped a vehicle for expired planes. The driver, John McCoy III, began arguing with the officers when asked to exit his vehicle, said Virginia Beach Police Chief Paul Neudigate.

McCoy pulled out a pistol and shot both officers multiple times, Neudigate said. Afterward, McCoy was found dead in a shed with what officials believe was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

"The officers, Girvin and Reese, they were dedicated, determined peace officers and public servants," Neudigate said. "They had stellar reputations in our department and their work ethic was beyond reproach."

A GoFundMe has raised more than $54,000 for Reese's wife and family as of 3:30 p.m. Monday.

Somerdale Mayor George Badey ordered all of the borough's flags to be flown at half-mast to honor Reese.

This article includes Associated Press reporting.