Recalling a Fallen Deputy—and a Wife's 'Three Times' Broken Heart

It was May 9, 1993—Mother’s Day—when sheriff’s Deputy Kent Hintergardt  responded to a domestic dispute between an unmarried couple.

The girlfriend was killed and later the boyfriend fatally shot Hintergardt after only two years in the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.

He left his wife, Linda Hintergardt,  a year-old daughter Marissa and unborn daughter Kena.

On Thursday, about 75 people gathered to dedicate a memorial on the 20th anniversary of his death.

The emotional dedication—which took place at the Southwest Sheriff's Station in Murrieta—attracted officials, officers and loved ones of Hintergardt.

Linda Hintergardt told those at the dedication that she clearly remembered the night he died when “four people knocked on her door.”

“They gave me the news that absolutely broke my heart,” she said with her daughters by her side. “My heart actually broke three times—one for my loss, but two more times for my girls.

“Marissa was only 1 and Kena hadn’t been born yet. I was sad that Marissa was so young that she wouldn’t have memories of this man who just loved her so much and for Kena I knew she would never get to meet Kent.”

Both daughters, who are now in college, described growing up without their father as “difficult.”

Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone, who served on the Temecula City Council at that time, also remembered that ordeal.

“I was there that fateful night and I remember getting the phone call that an officer was shot,” he said. “The painful experience doesn’t compare to the call that Linda received that night.”

Sheriff Stan Sniff, who briefly worked with Hintergardt, said Hintergardt was one of 21 deputies to have died on duty since the inception of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1893.

“Kent’s sudden, violent and premature death is a stark reminder of the sacrifices made daily by past, present and future law enforcement officers who stand vigil over us night and day,” Sniff said.

“It’s also a very solemn reminder of the great danger that each of the young men and women serving us today face and why each of those men and women need to have our respect, admiration and support.

“I knew Kent and Kent would’ve wanted everyone of us to remember his own sacrifice by remembering the sacrifices made by those.”

Hintergardt was 33 at the time of his death and came to Riverside after serving with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

“It’s very tragic that he met his demise so early,” Supervisor Stone said. “Life is short, but a good name goes on forever.”

The memorial can be seen at the Southwest Sheriff’s Station at 30755-A Auld Road in Murrieta.