Paul Hale married his childhood sweetheart, Connie, on June 2nd 1984. The young couple met in their hometown of Battle Creek, Michigan. They had never dated anyone but one another, went to every prom together, and even won a homecoming title along the way. Connie and Paul moved to North Carolina in 1984. They joyfully welcomed their first child, Jessica, into the world in 1987, and yet another beautiful baby girl, Stephanie, in October of 1989.

Paul graduated from the City of Raleigh Police Academy almost exactly one year later. He worked diligently as a patrol officer for seven years while his young family continued to thrive, and was promoted in rank to Detective on July 7th 1997. Paul enjoyed the little things in life like taking his girls to swim practice, calling his wife 3 or 4 times a day and attending St. Raphael Catholic Church with his family each Sunday morning. Connie commented in an article written shortly after Paul's death, “We were living a charmed life.” “Most people never have what I had,” she added.

Paul gave the babysitter the day off so that he could spend time running around Falls Lake with his two daughters, then ages 7 and 10, on his last day. He was called in early to work that evening, just three days after his promotion to Detective, and learned that he and his partner would be taking over a stakeout assignment. Their mission was to detain a murder suspect so that homicide detectives could then interrogate him.

Meanwhile, Connie was having dinner with her parents at Duffy's restaurant near the couple’s Raleigh home when her pager went off. Annoyed by the interruption, she almost didn't return the call. But Connie immediately knew something was wrong by the tone in the voice she heard on the other line. “There's been an accident.” Paul was dead, Police Chief Mitch Brown told her.

When approached by Detective Hale, the murder suspect fired one deadly 9mm shot, killing Paul. At age 35, his tragic death became the first Raleigh police officer shot and killed in the line of duty in 17 years. The community was overcome with emotion, stunned, and deeply saddened by the heroic life and precious family he left behind.

Thousands of people packed the overflowing pews of St. Raphael Church during Paul's funeral that following Tuesday. Hundreds of citizens, strangers even, lined the streets holding flags for miles as Officers in shiny cruisers led the procession to the Raleigh Memorial Cemetery where his body was laid to rest. With Jessie and Stephie on either side, the guard handed Connie a folded American flag and the ceremony ended with a 21-gun salute.

It was a difficult time for the Hale family and those who worked with or knew Paul and his story. Overtime, they found comfort in the overwhelming outpour of generosity and support offered by the Raleigh community. It became clear that Paul's surviving spouse and children need not worry how they were going to cover funeral costs, private school tuition and other immediate financial needs. Instead, Connie and the girls were blessed with the peace of mind that many would consider necessary to properly mourn the loss of a loved one. They did their best to make it through the sorrow filled days, and tried their hardest to get back to the everyday life they had once known.

It’s been ten years now since Paul's tragic death, and if you followed their story in the news, you may be wondering what Connie and her two girls are up to these days. We are happy to report that the surviving family is doing well, and invite you to Click here for a quick family update.