''We knew what we had to do''

Man who rescued El Cajon officer tells story, denies he's a hero

Dave Lembcke
Dave Lembcke
Dave Lembcke
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Dave Lembcke says he’s not a hero. Many would argue with him. El Cajon Police Chief Jim Redman calls Lembcke “El Cajon’s Local Hero.” Few would argue with him. On Aug. 11, Lembcke came to the aid of Officer Jared Slocum, ﻿one of two policemen dispatched to a domestic dispute that left a 14-month-old baby and her grandmother dead. The shooter, Kevin Collier, then turned his rifle on Slocum, wounding him with a shot to the head. While Slocum’s partner, Tim McFarland, struggled to drag him to safety, Lembcke and another neighbor, Scott Carver, bolted into the line of fire to help remove Slocum from further danger. Lembcke then stayed with Slocum, offering aid, comfort and prayer, until medical help arrived. A hero? “God just had me there to help,” Lembcke says. “He’s the one who spared the life of officer Slocum.” In an interview, Lembcke talks about that day in August, and who he sees as the real heroes.

Q: It seems clear you’re a religious man. Did you come from a religious family?

A: No, my family wasn’t religious. I’m not really religious. But I do believe in the Bible and I believe in God, in Jesus. I’m born again. I’m not going to get into it, but I’ve had a past. Talk about turning a life around, police officers are my best pals now.

Q: And you don’t believe you’re a hero?

A: My heroes were my father and [former heavyweight boxing champ] Rocky Marciano. I’m just a Christian man. I was put there to help, to pray for Jared Slocum, that’s all. If you want to talk about heroes, those two policemen were heroes. When Jared cried for help, Tim McFarland went out there, knowing he was the next target.

Q: How did you become a part of the action that day in August?

A: I live at the end of the street; it’s only two blocks long. Before the shootings, I saw the guy fly down the street in his truck, grab his rifle and run into the neighbors’ house. I thought maybe he was after a rattlesnake. My wife, Vida, called the house and there was no answer. Our neighbors called and Collier answered. He told them, “I just killed my baby (Rhilee) and mother-in law (Beverli Rakov). ﻿By that time, the house was on fire and we went down there to see if we could help.

Q: You put yourself in harm’s way. What were you thinking?

A: A thousand things went through my mind. I thought maybe someone was alive in there. So I stepped onto the driveway, and a voice said, “Don’t come up here.” I could see through the smoke that Collier was on his porch with his rifle. The police arrived, two of them coming up the street. I called out and got their attention. Slocum first took cover behind the shooter’s truck across the street. He knelt down, and then the shooting started. He returned fire, but the guy took aim at him and he was shot in the head. This all happened in what seemed like split seconds.

Q: Was Slocum still conscious?

A: He was crying out for help; you could see his eyes and it was like he was dying. It just tore me up. Officer Tim told him to get down, then Slocum lost his equilibrium, ran into a fence and fell. Tim was in the line of fire, too, but he holstered his gun so he could use both hands to help Jared. That’s a hero. And that’s when God just prompted me to help. We knew what we had to do. Together, Tim, Scott and I managed to pull Slocum behind another neighbor’s car.

Q: Was he able to talk to you?

A: He was yelling a lot of stuff, but not all of it made sense. I just knelt down and put my hands on him and prayed with him. I really believe God used me to help him that day. It seemed like a long, long time, but they tell me from the time Slocum was shot to the time they arrived to take him to the hospital was only about eight minutes.

Q: How is Officer Slocum now?

A: He’s doing great. It’s miraculous. I was told he was up and around, but I haven’t seen him. They say it will take a year for him to fully recover. The former chief of police, Pat Sprecco, and Chief Redman and others from the force have stayed in touch. They’ve come to our home and we talked for more than an hour. When they got up to leave, Chief Redman was the last to say goodbye. He put his arm around me and said, “I want to thank you for what you did for the officers, and what you said about Tim McFarland being a hero. He’s my son. I’ve raised him since he was one year old.”

Tom Blair: (619) 293-1715; tom.blair@utsandiego.com

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