NEW JERSEY COPS ■ MAY 2014
know the local cop who protects and
serves them. But this was more than
that. “There were people who might
come to the bank once a week every
Monday that knew Joyce and she knew
them,” Wright added.
Exhibit B comes from Holmes, and
only he can put this one into words.
“Joyce was the officer who could always
get away with telling off a superior. If a
sergeant got on her nerves, the captain
would come by and say, ‘What did you
do to Joyce?”
Exhibit C is the wake. Holmes said the
line into St. Mathews Church in Orange
stretched 10 blocks, and they were going
in four at a time to pay respects. It was so
big because everybody loved Joyce,”
Holmes added.
Wright loved that it was never a big
deal for Carnegie to stay an extra 20 minutes, or a full shift, if needed. She also
admired that Joyce’s uniform was always
on point, her shoes were always shined
and she her appearance was impeccable
from head to toe.
Holmes loved that Joyce loved sneakers. “She had every pair. I think she spent
all her checks on sneakers.” More than
that, he loved her way with those who
stepped over the line. “She would preach
to you, but she wasn’t a hard-ass,” he
said. “As she was putting the cuffs on a
shoplifter she would be saying, ‘Now is it
worth going to jail over a $10 bag of
candy?’”
The first Orange LODD in 33 years, the
first female officer in Essex County to be
lost in the line of duty and only the second female cop in New Jersey to be killed
on the job sent emotion all the way to
the top. New Jersey Gov. Christine Whitman came to the hospital when she
heard Carnegie had been shot.
What Lane loved about Carnegie most
was there all the time. “Her look,” he
said. “Her stare let off an aura of toughness.”
Never forget
Holmes knew something was wrong
on April 8, 1999 when he looked out the
window of The Vault and saw units from
NJ Transit, Maplewood, West Orange,
South Orange, Elizabeth and Newark
running on Main Street with lights on.
When a fellow Orange cop told him
Joyce had been shot, Holmes floored his
car and swore it went up on two wheels
when he made a left turn on to Central
Street leading to UMDNJ Hospital in
Newark.
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By the time he arrived, the priest was
coming out of the Emergency Room.
Holmes went in to see Joyce once last
time. And squeeze her hand.
Lane, in the meantime, joined in the
24-hour search that caught up with
Everett at his East Orange home. As word
of the search spread, residents began
dropping bouquets at the site of the
shooting which is now a memorial to
Carnegie. An oil portrait of Joyce at The
Vault and a picture of her at the front
entrance of the department serve as
additional memorials, though Lane says
these are just Joyce continuing to look
out for everyone.
To commemorate the 15th anniversary of Joyce’s passing, Lane and Holmes
made the journey to Washington, D.C.
on May 13. Not only did they raise a candle during the Candlelight Vigil that culminates Police Week Activities, they
went to the spot on the wall of remembrance at the National Law Enforcement
Memorial where her name is inscribed.
“We just wanted to tell her, ‘I love you,’
and that we will Never forget,” Holmes
said. “We had t-shirts made with ‘never
forget’ on them. She will always be
missed.”
And she will always be there. d