Like “9/11,” Stef Phillips Hinkle said she vividly remembers where she was and what she was doing the moment she heard the news that Deputy U.S. Marshal Derek Hotsinpiller had been tragically killed in the line of duty while serving a warrant in Elkins. Upon that news – received exactly five years ago today - she said her entire hometown of Bridgeport was devastated. She also said that though her friend is gone, he is certainly never forgotten.

 

Many join her in those heartfelt thoughts. Though hearts are saddened today, they are also uplifted – remembering good times shared with Hotsinpiller and the traits which have left a lasting impression.

 

Hotsinpiller was born June 2, 1986 to Pam – a special education teacher - and Jim – a Bridgeport Police Officer - who lived just off Corbin Branch Road on Bridgeport’s outskirts with their older son Dustin.

 

Logan Dodd has very distinct memories about visiting the family home when he and Derek were little boys.

“I’d say my earliest memory of Derek is from kindergarten,” he said.

 

In fact, Dodd and his twin brother Cole, Hotsinpiller and Chris Phillips were all in kindergarten together at Johnson Elementary School and all went on to become starters for the Bridgeport High School basketball team.

 

Dodd shared the memory of a special time with Hotsinpiller and his family.

 

“Cole and I went to their house when we all played Little League – probably between 9 and 12 years old – and we stayed the night, camping outside in a tent,” he said. “I remember waking up to the sound of a walkie talkie. You know - when you press a button and it makes that call noise. It was Derek’s dad calling us to tell us to come up to the house because his mom had made pancakes.”

 

The boys played Jerry West Basketball together and moved up through the ranks to Bridgeport Middle School, BHS freshman, JV and varsity basketball.

 

“Cole, Derek, Chris and Grant (Burton) and I all made the middle school team as seventh graders – and played together every year after that,” Dodd said.

 

The team went undefeated as freshmen. The next year, they lost just one game in JV – in overtime against Lincoln High School. And although the Indians lost in regionals to Buckhannon-Upshur, they went 23-0 in the regular season their senior year.

 

“There was a lot of winning going on,” Dodd said.

 

Beside the fact that Hotsinpiller could rebound a basketball and shoot up a storm on the court, he instilled much more in his team members.

 

“Derek had such passion,” Dodd said. “I don’t know of anyone who had more passion about anything he did than Derek.”

 

Another lifelong friend, Jason Nicholson shared Hotsinpiller’s passion for hunting and fishing.

 

“We went fishing everywhere together – Hinkle and Deegan Lakes, Maple Lake, Tygart Lake and Tygart River and we went bass and trout fishing on some streams and creeks up in the mountains,” he said.

 

Nicholson said he has many good memories of sitting around a bonfire, sharing laughs with Hotsinpiller and several of their other friends. They were a tight bunch and they were all together at the family’s home following Jim Hotsinpiller’s sudden death in 2001. It was during their freshman year and it had a huge impact on all of them.

 

The tears still flow thinking about that time in their lives, Nicholson said. But then, so does the laughter.

 

“I remember the next hunting season after Jim passed away and Derek was hunting and killed a deer,” Nicholson said. “I think maybe Dustin was out of town and I had literally just got home from hunting and took all my clothes off when I got a call from Derek. He said he got a deer and forgot how to gut it. He asked me to come help him.”

 

Nicholson played baseball with Hotsinpiller up through Little League, after which his friend focused more on other sports. And though he didn’t play basketball with Hotsinpiller, he went through it with him. Perhaps no moment is more vivid than that regional game against Buckhannon-Upshur.

 

“Bridgeport had had a 20-point lead at halftime and ended up losing the game,” Nicholson said. “Derek missed the game-winning shot. I still have the picture in my house with Derek on the ground crying and I’m on top of him. The team was expected to go to states and everything just fell apart.”

 

Hotsinpiller seemed to “grow up fast,” his friends said.

 

“He graduated from high school and knew exactly what he wanted to do,” Dodd said. “A lot of people have to figure out what they want to do in life – but he knew. He died doing what he loved and that’s inspiring to me.”

 

That determination to serve the public through law enforcement was in a big way inspired by his role models – his dad and brother. Lt. James W. Hotsinpiller had served Bridgeport Police Department for 27 years and was second in command. He had been a member of the Child Abuse Task Force and commander of the Special Response Team. Within a year after his dad’s death, Dustin Hotsinpiller joined the Bridgeport police force, soon to be promoted to detective.

 

From the moment he met Hotsinpiller, Moore could tell he was very serious about becoming a law enforcement officer.

 

“He was following in the footsteps of his dad and his brother and his mindset was always in the right place,” he said.

 

In fact, Hotsinpiller started his internship with another FSU student who quickly decided the USMS was not for him.

 

“But not Derek. There was no looking back,” Moore said. “He was always on my heels, trying to learn everything he could as an intern.”

 

Upon completion of the internship and attainment of his college degree, Hotsinpiller spent 17 weeks at the USMS Academy in Glynco, Ga. At age 23, he graduated from the academy on April 23, 2010 and was assigned Badge 4595. He was the youngest member of his class.

 

“Then he was fortunate enough to be selected to work at the Clarksburg office,” Moore said. “He returned to the office upon successful completion of the academy and started working as a deputy marshal.”

 

Moore was assigned as his field training officer.

 

“Basically that was one year of training just to monitor him, do weekly reports for him and make sure he stayed on track, learning and accomplishing things he needed to learn to be successful,” Moore said.

 

From the time he returned from the academy to Feb. 16, 2011, when he was killed in the line of duty, Moore worked with Hotsinpiller on a very regular basis.

 

“He was a very successful guy for being so young,” he said. “He worked, putting forth maximum effort. There were always positive results from everything he did.”

 

Though he was the training officer, Moore said he learned from Hotsinpiller.

 

“One thing was his positivity. No matter what the assignment was, he would always stay positive and try to see the best,” he said. “In law enforcement, it’s easy to fall into the mundane and see things from an old point of view. Derek was always very good at making you see things in a different light and getting excited about the job again.”

 

As Bridgeport Police Department released today:

“Early in the morning hours of February 16, 2011, deputies assigned to the United States Marshal Service along with local and state law enforcement officers, assembled in Elkins, West Virginia to execute search and arrest warrants. Following a forced entry into the dwelling, the fugitive fired through a closed door directly into the path of the oncoming officers. Derek was fatally wounded. At the age of 24, Derek had made the ultimate sacrifice. He left behind his fiancée Megan, his mother Pam and his brother Dustin, his sister-in-law Ashley and nephews Landon and Liam.”

 

Bridgeport Police Chief John Walker said Bridgeport Police Department is forever changed because of the service of the Hotsinpiller men. Jim and Dustin were members, but Derek was also a brother in law enforcement.

 

“He meant a lot to us and as a U.S. Marshal he was always there to assist the department in any way,” Walker said. “His goal was to catch those criminals who didn’t have any respect for the life and property of those living in our communities. He believed so strongly about that that he lost his life protecting others.”

 

Hotsinpiller is missed each and every day and on this five-year anniversary of his death, he is paid tribute. Like Hotsinpiller, Bridgeport police officers would not want to do anything else but protect the community. His passion lives on and because of that Feb. 16, 2011 incident in Elkins, training has become even more intense for members of law enforcement.

 

“This unfortunate incident causes our officers to train the best they can and to always be vigilant of those who prey on society,” Walker said.

 

Nicholson said Hotsinpiller had quite an impact on his life.

 

“Even though we were the same age, I always looked up to Derek – how he carried himself and the person he was,” he said. “But I don’t think I really realized how much impact he had on the community as a whole – and everybody in it – until his funeral and then everything else happened, like they retired his high school basketball jersey, named the Clarksburg Federal Building after him and today – Elkins officially declaring it Derek Hotsinpiller Day. He was a good guy and he genuinely cared about everybody.”

 

Dustin Hotsinpiller is now following in his little brother’s footsteps. Since July of 2012, he has served as a deputy US Marshal. Established in memory of Jim and Derek Hotsinpiller, a scholarship fund is helping other young people pursue an education and subsequent career in criminal justice. Among other fundraisers, the "Derek Hotsinpiller Fallen Stars Memorial 5K" is held each June in Bridgeport.