 | Detective William Patrick Messer
Charleston County Police Department
South Carolina
Friday, March 12, 1976 |
I typed your name in a search engine and here you are. All these years and it seems just like yesterday. Who was Pat Messer? He took great pride in being a cop and only wanted to go further in his law career, even if it meant going back to school for the needed degrees. He loved being a cop and told me more than once that he would die with his boots on.
He loved his wife "Joanne" and daughter "Danielle" deeply. One time we were going down O'hear Ave. As we drove by a mobile home that they had rented when their daughter was just a small baby, he mentioned that on a cold late winter night while living there, they had run out of fuel oil. While he was reminiscing his eyes lit up, he smiled, and said they all three huddled together under the covers to keep warm. He then said, that it was the happiest night of his life......
He was a good friend. I remember all to well the tears I shed 32 years ago. One of the hardest days after his death, was the first time I saw his green unmarked patrol car. When I saw the car, of course I looked for him behind the wheel but then I remembered he was gone.
Sherry Sherry
Friend
2008-03-13
YOU ARE REMEMBERED TODAY AND THANK YOU SIR FOR YOUR SERVICE, AS ALWAYS THIS WRITER IS DISAPPOINTED THAT JUSTICE WAS NOT SERVED ON YOUR BEHALF. VANDENBERGHE
2008-03-12
Det. Messer,
On today, the 32nd anniversary of your murder, I would just like to say thank you for your service and sacrifice for the citizens of Charleston County. And to your family and loved ones, I wish to extend my deepest sympathy. That your murderer only spent 9 years of a 27 year sentence disgusts me.
R.I.P.
Anonymous Anonymous
2008-03-12
"The Badge"
He starts his shift each day
To respond to calls unknown.
He drives a marked patrol car.
A police officer he is known.
He's paid by the citizens' taxes
To make it safe on the streets.
But he usually has a second job
'Cause a waitress has his salary beat.
Now he doesn't know a holiday
'Cause he works all year round.
And when Thanksgiving and Christmas finally arrive
At his home he cannot be found.
He's cursed and assaulted often,
The one whos blood runs blue.
He seldom ever gets a thanks,
To some he's just a fool.
His friends are always other cops
'Cause people just don't understand
That underneath his badge and gun,
He's just another man.
He knows there might not be a tomorrow
In this world of drugs and crime.
And he gets so mad at the court system
'Cause the crooks don't get any time.
And each day when he leaves for work,
He prays to God above.
Please bring me home after my shift
So I can see the ones I love.
But tonight he stops a speeding car,
He's alone down this ole' highway.
It's just a little traffic infraction.
He does it everyday.
Well, he walks up to the driver's window,
And his badge is shining bright.
He asked the guy for a driver's license,
When a shot rang through the night.
Yes, the bullet hit its mark,
Striking the officer in the chest.
But the Department's budget didn't buy
Each officer a bullet-proof vest.
So he lay on the ground bleeding.
His blood wasn't blue - His blood was red.
And briefly he thought of his loved ones
'Cause in a moment the officer was dead.
In the news they told the story
Of how this officer had died.
And some who listened cared less,
But those who loved him cried.
Well, they buried him in uniform
With his badge pinned on his chest.
He even had his revolver,
He died doing his best.
Written By:
David L. Bell
Sergeant
Richland County Sheriff's Department
Columbia, South Carolina
Used with Special Permission of the Author
Copyright © 1999 - All Rights Reserved
and may not be duplicated without permission Investigator David L Bell
Richland County Sheriff's Dept., Columbia, SC
2007-11-16
I was with the NCPD at the time of your EOW. I remember well the search and manhunt for your killer. I worked all night on our day off, as did most of our Department helping in the search. I left NCPD and moved to Florida in 1979. It was only by coming to this website did I just learn that the guy who did this only served 9 years. Rest well Detective Messer, for he shall pay a greater price in the end. I'm sure by now, that your daughter is a wonderful woman who will always know that her Father died a Hero serving the county he loved. Former Officer Bob Wells
North Charleston Police Department
2007-03-31
I'm so glad you live on in our hearts. I miss you, miss knowing who you are, what you loved, what you hated, how you loved. Thank you for wanting to clear the streets of drugs for me, I can't wait to meet you on the other side. Danielle Messer Mace
daughter
2006-09-04
Rest in peace my brother in blue. Thank you for your service to the citizens of Charleston County and the State of South Carolina. May God bless you. State Constable J.L. Green
S.C. State Constables
2006-02-20
Rest in peace Blue Angel.... you are not forgotten!
2005-08-08
MY BROTHER, YOU ARE NOT FORGOTTEN. A HERO NEVER IS. MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND MAY YOU REST IN PEACE. YOU SERVED WELL. CHIEF RONNIE WATFORD-RET.
JEFFERSON POLICE DEPT,S.C.
2004-03-12
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