NEWS RELEASE: Virginia legislators, Amherst County officials, state and local law enforcement, transportation officials, family and friends will gather Friday, Aug. 2, 2019, in the Town of Amherst to ceremoniously dedicate the South Main Street/Route 29 Business bridge over Route 29 as the “Trooper Lucas B. Dowell Bridge.” A second bridge will be dedicated in Dowell’s honor near his hometown in Smyth County in November.
Trooper Dowell, a 4-year veteran with the Department, was shot and killed on Feb. 4, 2019 while assisting with a search warrant during a narcotics arrest operation at a residence in Cumberland County.
A native of Chilhowie, Va., he earned a degree in Criminal Justice from Radford University. Dowell graduated from the Virginia State Police Academy in November 2014 as a member of the 122nd Basic Session. As a trooper, he was first assigned to the Virginia State Police Appomattox Division’s Area 18 Office, which encompasses Charlottesville and the counties of Albemarle, Fluvanna, Greene and Nelson. He later transferred to Area 20, which is also in the Appomattox Division and encompasses Lynchburg and the counties of Amherst and Campbell. Dowell was also a member of the Appomattox Division Tactical Team – the equivalent of a SWAT Team.
