‘Beloved’ firefighter died protecting her child, cops say. 4 years later, man charged
Lt. Ashley Berry was a “beloved” Virginia firefighter known for her generous spirit.
So much so, Berry spent Thanksgiving in 2019 creating food baskets for others. But that same night, she performed her “last act of love” when she shielded her 5-year-old son from gunfire that killed her, according to the Hopewell Police Department and details family members shared with news outlets.
“She was living proof of a superhero,” her cousin, Angel Berry, told WTVR. “She saved so many lives, and she’s still saving lives in her strength and her courage.”
Now, almost four years after Ashley Berry was shot to death, a Hopewell man has been charged with murder. Officers in an Aug. 15 news release didn’t list attorney information for the man, identified as 30-year-old Darrell Donnell Taylor Jr.
Mother shows one ‘last act of love’
The case dates to the night of Nov. 28, 2019, which was Thanksgiving. Ashley Berry — a mother of three and an off-duty firefighter — was leaving a holiday celebration with her youngest child when gunfire erupted, according to police and the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
Officers said the 33-year-old mom used her body to shield the boy from the bullets. But she was seriously injured in the shooting and rushed to a hospital, where she died after protecting her son.
“(I told him) ‘Your mother’s last act of love, for you, was to push you down,’” Waverly Berry, the boy’s grandfather, told WTVR.
Police believed Ashley Berry was killed in a drive-by shooting and wasn’t the intended target. As the years passed, officers asked the public for help as they sought clues in their homicide investigation.
“Her family is truly devastated,” William Spindle of the Brothers and Sisters Combined Firefighters Union told WRIC in November 2019. “This doesn’t make it any better that this is the holidays, the time of being thankful for what you have. This is without question a senseless act of unnecessary violence.”
Then, years later on Aug. 15, police announced that a grand jury indicted Taylor on charges of “murder, use of a firearm while in commission of a felony, conspiracy to commit murder and shooting into an occupied building.” He already was in custody in Brunswick County on unrelated charges.
“This tragic incident occurred almost four years ago and yet the officers and detectives working this investigation never gave up hope,” Gregory Taylor, interim police chief, wrote in the release.
Firefighter was ‘truly beloved’
Meanwhile, Ashley Berry is remembered as a selfless person who was a “pillar in the community” and a “truly beloved” member of the Richmond Fire Department.
“She was an amazing mother, daughter, friend, and employee who accepted challenges faced before her while doing her best,” the department wrote in a 2019 Facebook post.
Police in Hopewell, roughly 20 miles southeast of downtown Richmond, said a reward of up to $1,000 may be available for people who share information leading to additional arrests in the case. Anyone with details is asked to call officers at 804-541-2284, Crime Solvers at 804-541-2202 or use the P3 Tips smartphone application.
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