NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Virginia legislators, City of Newport News officials and state and local law enforcement dedicated an I-64 overpass Thursday in memory of a Virginia State Police Trooper who died in the line of duty.
The State Route 143 bridge at Exit 255 over I-64 in Newport News has been renamed the Trooper Chad Phillip Dermeyer Memorial Bridge.
Trooper Dermyer, 37, was shot and killed on March 31, 2016, while participating in a tactical interdiction training operation at the Richmond Greyhound bus station. Dermyer approached a male subject and verbally engaged with the individual when the subject shot him. He later died at VCU Medical Center from the injuries he sustained.
A native of Jackson, Michigan, Dermyer graduated from the Virginia State Police Academy in November 2014 as a member of the 122nd Basic Session. Before joining the state police, he served with the Newport News Police Department and the Jackson, Michigan, Police Department. Trooper Dermyer also served in the U.S. Marine Corps for four years.
The dedication ceremony took place at the Newport News Police Department Headquarters.