Greater Clevelanders lined city streets Monday to pay their respects to fallen Cleveland Police officer Jamieson Ritter. A multi-car procession, which stepped off from Chambers Funeral Home on Rocky River Drive, weaved its way through the city to a memorial service downtown for the four-year Cleveland Police veteran.
According to the police department, Ritter’s funeral will take place out of state.
Dozens of police cars from Cleveland and surrounding police departments, as well as from departments as far away as Toledo and Youngstown, joined the procession. Police motorcycles flanked the hearse near the head of the procession.
Residents silently lined the streets as the procession passed. Some waved flags. Lakewood police raised a large flag near the McKinley Avenue and Rocky River Drive intersection. An officer nearby saluted as the procession passed.
When the procession reached the Third District on Chester Avenue, where Ritter, 27, was based, officers stood outside. The hearse stopped briefly in front of the district for a moment of silence.
Residents left their own remembrances of Ritter at the Third District and online. One person wrote that Ritter saved his life and visited him in the hospital afterward. Ritter and his partner, Officer Brittany Vajusi, were recognized as officers of the month in May for saving two lives, including that of a shooting victim.
The procession to the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist
About 30 motorcycles led the procession as it neared the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist downtown. A long row of police cars parked on Superior Avenue outside of the cathedral, some from as far away as Kelley’s Island. Police and sheriff’s deputies lined up in rows along East 9th Street. They saluted as the hearse arrived. The only sound was cathedral bells that tolled at the top of the 10 o’clock hour.
One woman with her children stood outside the cathedral. They all had Ritter’s badge number, 1176, drawn on their cheeks.
The memorial drew state and local officials, including Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb, former Cleveland mayor Dennis Kucinich, Cleveland Safety Director Wayne Drummond and Cleveland City Council members.
‘A natural leader…[with a] strong moral compass’
Inside the cathedral, Ritter’s flag-draped casket was draped with a funeral pall, a cloth that covers the casket. Pallbearers carried it to the front of the cathedral as an officer sang “Amazing Grace.” Auxiliary Bishop Michael G. Woost presided at the service.
“We are here to honor Cleveland Police officer Jamieson Ritter not for how he died but for how he lived,” said the Rev. Doug Brown, a Catholic priest and one of about 20 chaplains for the Cleveland Division of Police, who gave the homily. “He sacrificed his life for people he didn’t even know. He knew that he could indeed make things better.”
One of Ritter’s instructors at the police academy called him “a natural leader … [with a] strong moral compass,” Brown said. He added that Ritter held study sessions for classmates who were struggling and helped lift their spirits with jokes.
“He never came to work in a bad mood,” Brown said. He loved to race his colleagues wearing Chuck Taylors and was “effectively known as the fastest white boy around,” Brown said. “To know him was to love him.”
“His sacrifice will not be forgotten,” Brown closed. “His legacy will live on through us all. Today we promise to never forget Cleveland Patrol Officer Jamieson Ritter … End of watch July 4th, 2024.”
‘The absolute epitome of a police officer’
Others remembered him for his dedication and sense of humor.
Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy “Annie” Todd said Ritter had an incredible impact on the department. Let’s honor him by striving to make our community a better place just as he did everyday, she said.
“Officer Jamieson Ritter, your memory will forever be in our hearts,” she added. “I thank you for your service and sacrifice.”
Vajusi, Ritter’s partner, was the last speaker at the service. She shared memories from colleagues, calling Ritter “absolutely fearless.”
She remembered that, as part of their duties, they stopped at local businesses to introduce themselves, let kids sit in their zone car and bought birthday cakes for people celebrating in their yards.
“He was the absolute epitome of a police officer,” she said.
