Deputies to show support at Nichols funeral

CEDAR FALLS -The Black Hawk County Sheriff's Department is gearing up to say goodbye to a young Evansdale woman.

Lindsay Nichols, 22, died last week when she was shot by Timothy Roses, 45.

On the day of Lindsay's funeral, the department is gathering to show its support. Lindsay's father, Tom, is a long-time deputy with the Black Hawk County Sheriff's office. Dozens of deputies and staff members of the Black Hawk County Sheriff's Department are expected to pack the funeral service in Cedar Falls.

“We are trying to foster a family here, and as large of a family as we've got, it's just as hard and just as difficult when you lose somebody,” said Black Hawk County Sheriff Tony Thompson.

Many deputies helped plan the funeral. Sheriff Thompson said they also played a big role in getting Lindsay's brothers back to Iowa after the shooting. One is stationed in Germany and the other in Idaho for the Air Force. Deputies organized emergency transportation for the two.

“If there were a way for us to have a greater impact and greater support and shoulder more of that burden, we would too,” Sheriff Thompson said.

Thompson said his department will staff only those needed to keep the jail and courts running on Tuesday. The Waterloo Police Department and State Patrol will fulfill patrol duties so workers can all attend the funeral, and they're planning to make a strong statement of support.

“We're going to utilize some of our squad cars and equipment for the escort, the funeral process over to the Garden Of Memories and certainly work with our local partners and local agencies that we have great working relationships with to help with traffic patrol,” Sheriff Thompson said.

Many within the department are struggling to come to terms with the shooting in Jesup that took Lindsay's life. It's hard for them to see a fellow officer in pain.

“Tom is an extremely loving father, he's somebody that would live and die for those kids, and it's very clear when you talk to him how tough it is on him,” Sheriff Thompson said.

The funeral starts at 10:00 a.m., Tuesday at the Nazareth Lutheran Church in Cedar Falls. She will be buried in Waterloo at the Garden of Memories Cemetery.

Nichols was a radiology student at Covenant Medical Center and a 2008 graduate from Waterloo East High School.