Sheriff: Investigation into Ogdensburg shooting continues

OGDENSBURG – St. Lawrence County Sheriff Rick Engle says the investigation into the shooting of an Ogdensburg police officer is ongoing, but further details are not being released at this time.

Ogdensburg Police Chief Mark Kearns recently confirmed that the investigation is focusing on Jessica Rivers, a 17-year veteran of the city’s police force who was believed to be involved in an alleged accidental shooting that occurred at the police station on June 20.

Officer Daniel Hollister was shot and injured in the incident. He was taken to Syracuse Hospital where he was treated and later released. He returned home to recover with his family.

Engle said he could not comment at this time on whether charges would be filed as a result of the ongoing investigation, but he expected to have updated information in the near future.

When the incident occurred, six officers and one civilian employee of the department who witnessed the incident were placed on leave, but returned to work after being interviewed by sheriff’s investigators. Mayor Michael Tooley said this action was part of protocol related to the incident.

In addition, Rivers and Hollister have been off duty since the incident.

It is currently unclear if and when either of them will return to duty.

According to Engle, further details of the shooting have remained secret because the investigation is ongoing.

Decisions regarding disciplinary measures are made by the city.

Since June 2020, police disciplinary records have been considered public documents, not exempt from the state’s Freedom of Information Act. However, the documents are not available until investigations are completed and official disciplinary action has been taken. To that end, Chief Kearns said, the City of Ogdensburg and the City of Ogdensburg Police Chief’s Office are conducting an independent investigation.

A GoFundMe campaign to support the Hollister family can be found at https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-officer-dan-hollisters-recovery