I've never experienced the feeling of helplessness as I do now. With ever second that I breathe, my heart aches for my sister as she is currently experiencing something that we all fear and she is experiencing this at such a young age. She's only 31 and she has to bury her best friend, soul mate and love of her life. Friday is the "policeman" funeral that Chris always wanted and then we fly up to Pennsylvania, where he is from, to endure another viewing and funeral where he will be laid to rest finally.
To die as Chris did is so senseless. You'd think being that he was a NOPD Officer, that he would have died in the line of duty, but to be killed while passing time because your love is working is just senseless.
This is an article that my sister was interviewed for (along with a family friend). It was beautifully done and I wanted to share.
I will miss you, my brother. I also promise to take care of Maggie for you. You are her true love and your memory will live on forever!
Slidell resident, NOPD Lt. killed in auto crash
Slidell resident, NOPD Lt. killed in auto crash
New Orleans Police Department second in command of the First District Christopher Cambiotti and his girlfriend of seven years NOPD Homicide Detective Maggie Darling stand together at an event in the city. (Photo Courtesy of Maggie Darling)
Posted: Wednesday, October 24, 2012 1:00 am
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Updated: 4:26 pm, Tue Oct 23, 2012.
Christopher N. “Chris” Cambiotti, 42, was born in 1970 and grew up in the little city of Bethlehem, part of the Lehigh Valley region of Pennsylvania. He died tragically Oct. 20, in Hattiesburg, Miss., following a two-vehicle collision along U.S. Route 49.
How Cambiotti, a built and courageous man who always sported a “crew cut,” made his way to the Gulf Coast, only later to climb the ladder through promotion after promotion with the New Orleans Police Department, is quite the journey. Many couldn’t imagine taking such chances that Cambiotti had, friends say.
According to Donald Paisant, a former NOPD officer and now Chief of Security for the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans Arena and Champions Square, Cambiotti was a longtime friend, and “immediately took a liking to him.”
“He was a very personable young man, always smiling, always positive, Paisant said while being interviewed at Cambiotti’s home alongside Maggie Darling, Chris’ girlfriend of seven years and homicide detective for the NOPD.
“He went to high school in Bethlehem and went on to earn his degree in Business Administration at a college in Lehigh,” Paisant said.
Cambiotti’s parents, Carmen and Henry Cambiotti, still reside in Pennsylvania, while his older brother, Henry Jr. “Rick” Cambiotti, moved out of the city as Chris had, he added.
Cambiotti worked for some time in Bethlehem following his college studies but decided he wanted to become a policeman.
“He applied at three locations - Miami, New Orleans and Los Angeles - and the first one to call was New Orleans. We were doing a hiring at the time,” Paisant said.
Cambiotti would undergo training with the Police Academy and after graduating in 1997 he was assigned work in the New Orlean’s 8th District on “night watch,” working from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.
It was while working in the 8th District as a lieutenant that Paisant met Cambiotti. At the time Paisant was Cambiotti’s platoon commander.
According to Paisant, the district was short of field training officers and when the number got real low he’d get Cambiotti on board with him. The two would become good friends.
“I asked him, ‘So what brings you to New Orleans,’” Donald said. “He says, ‘I can’t take the cold weather no more.’”
Once Cambiotti finished training, he was put out on the streets on his own in a one-man car. Paisant says Cambiotti went beyond his duties, was a productive officer and volunteered often, especially when dispatch would put out a call requesting police assistance.
“He was (often) the first one to say, ‘Lieutenant, I’ll take care of that,” Paisant said.
Times changed and so did the NOPD. In 1998, Paisant moved on to work in the 2nd District while Cambiotti remained in the 8th District. Paisant was out the loop for roughly three years before heading back to 8th District once again, except to work for the Detective Unit. By then Cambiotti had already been promoted into the Detective Unit. Officers working in the 8th District are generalized, meaning they cover a variety of cases, not just burglaries for example, Paisant said. However, Cambiotti specialized in solving cases pertaining to armed robbery, which was particularly a problem in the 8th District’s tourist area such as the French Quarter, he added.
“At one point he had the highest clearance rate of armed robbery cases citywide…and at that point I knew he was going to be really, really good,” said Paisant. “I knew he was a rising star in the police department and that if he kept on the path that he was going he was going to wind up being in charge of a detective squad, which he was at the time of his death.”
He was the district investigative unit commander of the 1st District, he said.
In 2005, Paisant retired from the NOPD and went on to work in another career.
It was around this time that Cambiotti met Darling. Both were employed with the NOPD, were dynamic and loved spontaneity.
“He was beautiful. He takes good care of himself; he was everything I was looking for,” Darling said.
“In the police profession - and I’m no longer in it now - you always like to have friends that you can bounce things off of and I think that in Maggie and Chris’ case they had the best of both worlds; they were best friends and they truly loved one another,” Paisant said.
According to both Darling and Paisant, those who didn’t know any better would have believed Chris was a New Orleanian his whole life.
As a transfer New Orleanian, Cambiotti grew to love the metropolitan area, Darling said. He lived in an apartment in the Warehouse District and also had a house uptown off Tchoupitoulas Street and Napoleon Avenue.
“He loved the city and even more he was so proud to be a New Orleans policeman. In fact I thought it was kind of freakish actually,” Darling joked.
Following Hurricane Katrina, Darling and Cambiotti vowed it would be best if they moved to the Northshore from Algiers, where they were previously living. They ultimately purchased a home in the new Crossgates neighborhood off Whitney Drive.
The couple was very passionate about sports and loved to just jump in the truck and go anywhere, Darling said.
“We loved to take day trips together on the whim, just lived very spontaneously,” she said.
On Saturday, Darling was on duty and working the day shift. Her boyfriend had the day off and was looking “to kill time.” Cambiotti’s friend, Thomas Daughdrill, 42, asked if he wanted to take a ride to Mississippi, for no other reason than to go driving cause it was a beautiful day, Darling said.
Meanwhile, Paisant was just sitting in his seat within the University of Southern Mississippi’s stadium to watch a football game when he got a call from a Deputy Chief of the NOPD.
He said Chris had been in a bad accident in Hattiesburg, Paisant said.
According to Mississippi Highway Patrol Troop J Spokesman Todd F. Miller, Daughdrill and Cambiotti were riding northbound along U.S. Route 49 around 5 p.m. in a 1970s Midget when a 2002 Mercury Mountaineer, driven by 26-year-old William Scott, of Hattiesburg, impacted their vehicle’s rear.
Daughdrill, Cambiotti and the Midget sped off the roadway. Cambiotti was ejected from the vehicle and died on the scene, according to memo released by the NOPD.
Neither Daughdrill nor Scott was cited and an investigation is ongoing, Miller said.
“It didn’t appear alcohol or anything like that was involved,” he said.
When Paisant received the news, he headed to Forrest General Hospital where he believed Cambiotti was being transported to. I could still hear the PA System at USM, that’s how close the hospital was to the university, Paisant said. After waiting for a short time, Paisant got another call from the NOPD, except this time they told him Cambiotti was in the local morgue.
Meanwhile, Darling and Cambiotti’s boss Bobby Norton, who is the first district commander for the NOPD, were on their way to Hattiesburg.
“By the grace of God, Donald was already there. He was able to do something I couldn’t and that was identify him,” Darling said.
“Notifying family members of the tragic incident was probably the most difficult thing I’ve had to do. I’ve had to do it too many times and you never get used to it,” said Paisant.
With Cambiotti’s older brother being away on a trip in Mexico, Paisant had no choice but to call Henry Cambiotti directly. At first the former employer of Bethlehem Steele and proud father who is well into his 80s didn’t take the news well.
“I think he’s at peace. He knows it was an accident,” Paisant said. “He knows there’s nothing Chris did or didn’t do that could have done anything.”
At the end of his life, Cambiotti was second in command of the city’s first district.
“This is a true loss for our community. Chris was a dedicated officer who cared for and respected his community very much,” Norton said.
According to NOPD Superintendent Ronal Serpas, Cambiotti was popular among his fellow officers and made numerous contributions to the police department.
“He’d always make a point of coming over to say ‘hello’ during breaks at weekly COMSTAT meetings. He always had something positive to say and he always had a smile on his face,” Serpas said.
After asking Darling if she could share a few last words with her partner, she responded, “I love you and wish I could have been there for you.”
A memorial for Christopher Cambiotti will be held Friday at the Saint Louis Cathedral in New Orleans.
