Wife of murdered Yavapai Sergeant leans on faith and family after husband’s death

YAVAPAI COUNTY, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) - Yavapai County Sheriff’s Sergeant Rick Lopez was shot and killed in the line of duty in June of 2022. For the first time since the murder, Sgt. Lopez’s wife is speaking with Arizona’s Family. “I take one day at a time, one moment at a time,” Kymberli Lopez said. “There’s no good days, there’s no bad days. They all blend.”

Kymberli and Sgt. Lopez were married for more than 30 years and have two children together. Sgt. Lopez joined the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office 14 years ago. He was shot during a standoff in Cordes Lakes. The gunmen shot Lopez. He was airlifted to a hospital in Phoenix, where he later died from his injuries. “I don’t think I could imagine him watching me go through this and being okay without him,” Kymberli said. “I think that would be purgatory in itself.”

Kymberli says their marriage was fantastic. She’s now trying to cope with life without her best friend. “You just think its not going to happen to you. I was numb. There’s not much to do.”

In the days after he was shot, there was a procession from Phoenix to Prescott Valley. People lined up on the side of the highway and streets to honor Sgt. Lopez and his family as they went by. Support like that is helping the Lopez family cope. “It was amazing how many people were out there. It was overwhelming. It wasn’t just a community, it was the entire state coming together. I think about him all the time. just everything its a long marriage. Everything is embedded in what you do day to day.”

There is a fallen officer’s memorial in Prescott right next to the Yavapai County Courthouse. There are plans to build another memorial in the Lopez’s hometown, Prescott Valley. If you want to donate, you can call the Prescott Valley Parks and Recreation Department.

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