A fitting final drive

Those of you who are local to the Winston-Salem area know about the tragic death of police Sgt. Mickey Hutchens. Sgt. Hutchens was gunned down last week by a habitual criminal for reasons that none of us understand. His partner survived the shooting and was able to fatally wound the shooter, and somehow St. Hutchens survived almost a week before succumbing to his injuries.

Today was the funeral for Sgt. Hutchens and it was like nothing I had ever seen before. He was from Yadkin County, born and raised, and the entire county felt the effect of his death. Blood drives were held in his honor, news crews crossed the river with regularity, and church and business signs served as constant reminders to pray and remember his family. Wake Forest University was the site for the funeral itself and the graveside was at Forbush Baptist Church. Traffic from Winston-Salem to Yadkin County stretched for miles. I was stuck in traffic in Clemmons, not from cars trying to get on the highway but because people had pulled off on the side of the road to watch the procession and show their respects. It was if life stood still for this final ride home.

Sgt. Hutchens leaves behind a wife and two daughters, one of whom I know and have had a chance to minister to in the past. Yet lost in the midst of all of this is the forgotten fact that another funeral, surely smaller and less conspicuous, occurred last week as well. The mother and family of the Monte Evans, the man who shot and killed Sgt. Hutchens, buried their son, brother, and uncle. This villain, as he is known, also had a slow ride to his final resting spot, surrounded by a family grieving not just for their loss but for the loss of life that he caused. No one grieves for this man - most will tell you that he got what he deserved and should have never been free to commit such crimes - yet his family is paying the steep price of guilt and shame sins that they did not commit.

I do not believe that the Hutchens' family nor the family of the surviving officer, Daniel Clark, hold a grudge against Evans' family members. And I do not write this to defend Evans, for I can't condone or excuse what he did. But I can't help but think of how Jesus loves me in spite of my dirty sin, how I deserve to be remembered more as a villain than a hero. Yet God looks past my sin, through the cross, and loves me.

So I watched the procession for a hero today, a visual that will stay with me for a long time. And I consider the pain of two families, both of whom have suffered loss but only one of whom hurts in the quiet of ambiguity. My prayers have been for the Hutchens family over this past week and my heart goes out to the family of Monte Evans as they agonize over the loss of their son and the innocence that he shredded with his lifestyle choices.