Mother of officer slain in 1999: ‘He had a heart for the people’

Dayton officer Kevin Brame’s case remains unsolved.

The mother of a Dayton police officer shot and killed nearly 25 years ago has never given up hope that her son’s homicide will finally be solved.

Officer Kevin Brame was 31 when he was shot and killed the evening of Nov. 1, 1999, as he returned to his car after dropping off his two young sons at his estranged wife’s house in the 600 block of Cherry Drive in Dayton. He became a Dayton police officer on June 17, 1993, and had been on the force for six years.

“He was an excellent police officer,” said his mother, Rosemary Brame, who spoke during a Thursday afternoon joint news briefing held by the Dayton Police Department and FBI. “Not only in enforcing the law but he had a heart for the people that he met along his policing. He did not in any way shape or form deserve the fate that he encountered that night and I hope and pray every day that his case will be solved and he gets the justice that he deserves.”

The FBI is offering a reward for up to $15,000 for information leading to the arrest of a suspect or suspects involved in Brame’s homicide, and the local reward fund is up to $100,000 already is in place.

“There are people out there who have information that can help us with this case, and we are asking those people to come forward. Somebody somewhere knows something,” said Adam Lawson, special agent in charge.

“Kevin was a loving son, a great father and part of the Dayton Police Department family and he will never be forgotten. We are determined to solve this case no matter how long it takes. It is a top priority for the Dayton Police Department,” said Maj. Brian Johns.

Police said Kevin Brame was ambushed by his killer or killers hiding in bushes as he walked back to his car. He suffered a shotgun blast to the neck and died in the driveway next to his Chevrolet

Tracker.

The Brame case has been through several detectives during the years, but Dayton police have never publicly identified any suspects. Johns said Thursday that police do have several persons of interest in the case.

Brame’s estranged wife, Carla, moved to Texas after the slaying and has refused to cooperate with police or answer questions from reporters.

In 2007, police detective Dan Hill said there was no indication the killer may have been someone Brame had once arrested. Police also said they believed there were at least two people involved in the crime.

“We do not think it was a spontaneous crime,” Hill said previously.

From the start, the police department has been committed to finding Brame’s killer, and two investigators were assigned last year to give a renewed look at solving his homicide, Johns said.

“I so appreciate your vigilance and dedication to try to find the murderer of my child and I am very gratified that today we have the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation whose resources are nationwide and, I think, will make a tremendous difference in trying to find Kevin’s killer,” Rosemary Brame said.

Anyone with information can call 1-800-CALL FBI (2255324) or leave a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

People also can contact Dayton police at 937-333COPS (2677) or Miami Valley Crime Stoppers at 937222-STOP (7867) or miami valleycrimestoppers.com.

MARSHALL GORBY / STAFF Rosemary Brame, the mother of Dayton Police Officer Kevin Brame who was gunned down in November 1999, speaks during a media briefing Thursday at the Dayton Safety building. Behind her are Dayton police Maj. Brian Johns (left) and FBI Special Agent in Charge Adam Lawson.

On Nov. 1, 1999, just after 9 p.m., Kevin Brame, while off duty, parked his car in the driveway and returned his two small children to their home. As he returned to his car, an unknown assailant emerged from a row of hedges near the house and shot him.