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Hillsborough Scales Back Tribute For Slain Deputy

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By ANTHONY McCARTNEY and CHRIS ECHEGARAY, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 4, 2007

Updated: 12/04/2007 09:04 am

BRANDON - Barbara Lumsden Lovelace agrees with the idea of honoring the fallen sheriff's sergeant who was shot on Lumsden Road.

But she grew concerned when county officials released plans to designate a stretch of the road, named after her parents, Charlie and Thelma, years ago, a memorial highway in Sgt. Ron Harrison's honor.

So did county 911 officials, who worried that even a ceremonial title could confuse residents, first responders and those who call for help in an emergency.

County officials changed their plans late Monday, opting to designate the intersection of South Kings Avenue and Lumsden Road in Harrison's honor.

County commissioners had planned to designate a half-mile stretch of Lumsden as the "Sgt. Harrison Memorial Highway," a purely ceremonial title that wouldn't have changed any street signs or addresses.

But Lumsden Lovelace and others were worried the dual designation could confuse residents or lead to the entire road being renamed. The 72-year-old Valrico resident said she wanted to make sure officials "weren't taking the memorial away from one person and giving it to another.

"I am not against the sergeant being honored," she said. "Police and law enforcement really need to be honored, but my father and the family were active in the community. The road was named for them."

Charlie Lumsden was a citrus grower who owned a 74-acre orange grove that stretched from Valrico into Brandon. Lumsden Lovelace said the grove was sold and a subdivision was put in. It's called Lumsden Point.

He had three daughters - all of them retired teachers from the Hillsborough County School District. They live near where they grew up.

Public Works Director Bob Gordon and his staff worked with Lumsden Lovelace and others to come up with a compromise, settling on a memorial for the intersection where Harrison was shot and killed early Aug. 15. The 28-year veteran of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office had just completed a drunken driving checkpoint when he was killed.

Deputies later killed his assailant after he fired on them.

Lumsden Lovelace said she was happy with the compromise.

Renaming roads can be tricky, Gordon said. They involve lengthy public processes and many entities, including 911 dispatchers, residents and postal officials; all have to be involved.

It can also be painful for those who aren't offered the same distinction.

Relatives of Deputy David Anthony Abella had hoped to get a span of South 50th Street, also known as U.S. 41, renamed in honor of the 26-year-old, who was killed in a crash in April 2004 while responding to a call.

County commissioners did not have the authority to change the name of a federal road. Instead, they said in 2006 they would create a "Fallen Heroes" park to honor law enforcement officers and firefighters who were killed in the line of duty.

That project has since been put on hold.

Abella's name is enshrined on a memorial outside the sheriff's Ybor City headquarters, and he is honored annually during a ceremony for Hillsborough deputies and officers killed in the line of duty. Abella's grandmother, Hortensia Abella, said Monday that those honors are appreciated but that she still feels her family has been slighted.

"I wanted something named after him," she said. "I think we deserve that honor."

Gordon said having a single location, like a "Fallen Heroes" park, would prevent many of the issues that arise from renaming roads or erecting other roadside memorials.

"It's not a small thing to change the name of a road," Gordon said.

Reporter Chris Echegaray can be reached at (813) 259-7920 or cechegaray@tampatrib.com. Reporter Anthony McCartney can be reached at (813) 259-7616 or amccartney@tampatrib.com.

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