13 years later, Myrtle Beach police remember slain officer Joe McGarry

Myrtle Beach remembers, even after 13 years.

Myrtle Beach police officer Joseph McGarry Jr. was shot in the face and killed while questioning Luzenski Cottrell in the parking lot of Dunkin’ Donuts on Kings Highway at 12:30 a.m. Dec. 29, 2002.

Every year, the Myrtle Beach Police Department holds a memorial service to remember McGarry and his contribution to the community.

“It’s heartbreaking, but in a way we’re reflecting on all the good qualities of Joe,” said Angel Walker, a Myrtle Beach police officer.

About 100 people gathered around the memorial garden at Ted C. Collins Law Enforcement Center in Myrtle Beach on Tuesday afternoon to remember McGarry. Officers placed a memorial wreath in front of the slain officer’s plaque after Sgt. Mike Guthinger lit the memorial candle.

Guthinger was working alongside McGarry when he was killed.

“It’s just good to have something so we don’t forget,” Guthinger said. “We don’t want people to forget about it, especially the newer recruits.”

When McGarry and Guthinger went into the Dunkin’ Donuts shop that night, Guthinger testified that McGarry immediately recognized Cottrell and said to him that Cottrell was a suspect in an Horry County shooting. McGarry had written traffic tickets to Cottrell a few months before the incident.

The officers waited for Cottrell and several people with him to leave the business before they confronted him on the sidewalk outside. After a brief struggle, Cottrell shot McGarry in the face and fled.

In April 2005, Cottrell was convicted of murder and sentenced to death in McGarry’s death. Cottrell appealed the decision and in January 2008 the S.C. Supreme Court overturned his conviction and death sentence.

Jurors again sentenced him to death in September 2014 during a second trial.

Many people who attended Tuesday’s service were current officers, family or emergency workers. Walt Fennington, a member of the Myrtle Beach Blue Knights, was at the memorial to pay respects to not only McGarry but all other fallen officers.

The Blue Knights is a non-profit fraternal organization of active and retired police officers.

“You can’t forget these guys,” Fennington said. “It’s good to see this kind of support from the community, especially these days.”

Memorial services are a good way to gauge how deeply police presence impacts a community, especially when an officer was killed in the line of duty. Walker – who has been an officer for 16 years – said the large crowd just shows how much the community cared for McGarry.

“It gives us, as officers, an insight to what the community really thinks of us,” Walker said. “This incident hit the community very, very hard that night.”

This story was originally published December 29, 2015 at 8:04 PM with the headline "13 years later, Myrtle Beach police remember slain officer Joe McGarry."