Hit-and-run death of retired NH police sergeant hits department hard

KINGSTON, New Hampshire — The death of retired Hudson, New Hampshire Police Sgt. Donna Briggs is hitting her former police department hard.

“It’s tough, it’s a difficult day,” Hudson, NH Police Chief William Avery told me on Wednesday.

Avery and Briggs graduated police academy together. And both of them began their law enforcement careers together when the Hudson Police Department hired them in 1993.

“She was literally like a little sister to me,” Avery said.

The 59-year-old Briggs lived in Derry, New Hampshire and was a married mother of two adult children.

Police believe she was killed at about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday as she rode her bicycle along Route 125 in Kingston, New Hampshire.

The force of the crash pushed Briggs and her bicycle down an embankment. She wasn’t found for several hours.

New Hampshire State Police investigators are analyzing surveillance video recorded at an auto body shop across the street.

“We are looking for a dark-colored vehicle, and that’s the only information that we are prepared to release at this moment,” New Hampshire State Police Lt. Keith Walker told me.

Avery finds the facts of the case disturbing.

“I don’t know how another human being can leave another human being left to die. How they haven’t come forward yet is beyond my wildest dreams,” Avery said.

At the time of her death, Briggs was making plans to take part in next month’s Police Unity Tour, a bike ride from New Jersey to the Law Enforcement Memorial in Washington, D.C.

She planned to ride in memory of Kingston Police Officer Mel Keddy, killed by a drunk driver in 1995 near the same spot where she lost her life on Tuesday.

“She was just a model police officer,” Avery said on Wednesday. “She always treated everybody with respect. She was caring, compassionate. She did the job the right way.”

If you have any information about this case, you are urged to contact New Hampshire State Police Trooper Eric Torrens at 603-545-4396.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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