Hopewell Police look for answers in unsolved Thanksgiving night murder of a Richmond Fire official

Bill Atkinson, The Progress-Index
·2 min read
Three Thanksgivings ago in 2019, Richmond Fire Lt. Ashley Berry, pictured, was shot to death in a nighttime drive-by shooting on Sunnyside AVenue in Hopewell. Hopewell Police still are looking for the people responsible.
Three Thanksgivings ago in 2019, Richmond Fire Lt. Ashley Berry, pictured, was shot to death in a nighttime drive-by shooting on Sunnyside AVenue in Hopewell. Hopewell Police still are looking for the people responsible.

HOPEWELL — It's the third Thanksgiving since a Richmond Fire Department official was gunned down in a drive-by shooting, and Hopewell Police will mark the observance by once again asking for public help in catching those responsible.

The actual date of Lt. Ashley Nicole Berry's shooting is Nov. 28, but in 2019, that particular date was Thanksgiving. Berry, who was 33 at the time, was caught in the line of fire during a drive-by shooting in the 1000 block of Sunnyside Avenue. While police have said she was not the apparent target, they did say she was shot trying to shield one of her children.

Berry, a Chesterfield County resident, was taken to John Randolph Medical Center in Hopewell and later transferred to VCU Medical Center in Richmond, where she eventually died.

In an email Wednesday afternoon, Hopewell Police Lt. Jacquita Allen repeated a request for help from the public in finding the shooter or shooters.

"Lieutenant Berry left behind three children now 20, 14 and 8 years old. They are navigating through life without their mother and that is extremely hard on them," Allen wrote in the email.

More:Reward offered for arrest in firefighter's death

To address the uptick in violent crimes within city limits, Hopewell is hosting a Crime Summit Nov. 30 at the Hopewell Community Center.
To address the uptick in violent crimes within city limits, Hopewell is hosting a Crime Summit Nov. 30 at the Hopewell Community Center.

Days after the murder, Hopewell Police's then-chief announced that a "person of interest" had been located concerning the incident. However, a final connection was not made, and investigators found themselves back to square one.

More:'Person of Interest' in Berry death is in custody

"The family is pleading with the public to come forward with information that can bring their family justice," Allen wrote.

Berry was one of five homicide victims in Hopewell during 2019.

In recent years, Hopewell has been plagued by a rash of gun violence.

This year alone, there have been more than 120 reports of shots being fired across the city, according to Hopewell statistics. More than 30 of the calls involved someone getting shot, and eight of those people were murdered. In 2021, three people were killed in the city.

A special "Neighborhood Crime Summit" town-hall meeting to address the violence has been set for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30 at the Hopewell Recreation Center on City Point Road. The meeting is being sponsored by the city and will provide dialogue opportunities between residents and law-enforcement leaders.

More:Hopewell Police confirm city's eighth homicide victim is a teenager

Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on Twitter at @BAtkinson_PI.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Hopewell Police repeat calls for help solving a 2019 murder