Widow of Mike Gilotti to spread his ashes at Alabama 150 bridge named for him
When 33-year-old Lake Cyrus resident Mike Gilotti was killed in front of his home in January 2016, the Hoover community poured out support for his wife Heather and two young sons.
But after going through two trials of suspects who were acquitted in 2017 and 2018, Heather, who had moved to Fairhope, said she unfortunately began to associate Hoover with painful memories.
When Hoover Councilman Casey Middlebrooks approached her with the idea of naming the new bridge on Alabama 150 between Lake Cyrus Boulevard and Ross Bridge Parkway in memory of Mike, she was immediately in tears, she said.
The Hoover City Council on Monday night honored the Gilotti family with a dedication ceremony that included reading the proclamation for the bridge naming that was approved by the state Legislature and signed by the governor and secretary of state.
You could hear a pin drop as Heather spoke in the council chambers Monday night about what the bridge naming meant to her.
“I could finally see a glimpse of hope and healing amongst all this pain,” Heather said. “This was not just a plaque or a folded flag or a gravestone. This was an actual bridge that he (Middlebrooks) was proposing. A bridge to me signifies progress, a way to overcome obstacles and really a journey from life to death. It was so fitting for the amazing man that I loved. It was perfect.”
When Heather returned to Hoover recently after the signs went up proclaiming it the Jonathan Michael “Mike” Gilotti Memorial Bridge and she drove over it for the first time with her 8-year-old son, Russell, she fought to hold back the tears, she said.
“Nobody said anything. I was trying to hold back the tears. I didn’t want him to see me cry, but as soon as we passed the bridge, he said, ‘Man, that is so cool. Can we go back over it again?’ Heather said. She told him “as many times as we want.”
Heather said she has decided to spread Mike’s ashes there in a private ceremony before she returns to Fairhope. She has been holding onto them for three years, trying to figure out where to disperse them and when, and she said it just makes perfect sense to do it here in Hoover at the bridge, which was the route Mike took to go to the gym and to work, she said.
“Hoover is the only place we lived as a family of four,” she said. They had lived in Hoover for three years before Mike was killed, and their youngest son Kevin, now 4, was born here.
“ We were fully embraced here. … The boys and I are just so grateful for what you have done, the support you have shown us,” Heather said. “Mike’s life and legacy live on. He’s alive. I just pray that in the future this bridge will continue to serve as a symbol of hope and restoration. This is what Mike would have wanted all along.”
Heather was joined at the dedication ceremony Monday night by her two boys, her parents (Guy and Paula Higgins), Mike’s parents (Mike Gilotti Sr. and Angela Gilotti from Pennsylvania) and Mike’s aunt (Pamela Bender).
Mike Gilotti Sr. said it was heartwarming and wonderful to return to Hoover under these circumstances and to receive the warm greetings from so many people.
“Some of us have been here over the last few years under the most adverse circumstances imaginable,” he said. “We always took some solace and comfort that we had the overwhelming support of this community. It meant a lot to us. The support — the kind words — they didn’t go unnoticed. We are grateful. It genuinely helped us through some tough times during Mike’s funeral and of course the subsequent judicial process and proceedings that followed the event.”
Mike’s father said he knows it took a lot of effort and resources to get the bridge named after his son and, based on his personal observations and comments from others, he believes his son was the type of person deserving of such an honor.
He was a good person with strong character, positive values, a great spirit, great sense of humor, desire to contribute, a servant’s heart and a willingness to help others, his father said.
The resolution approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor noted that Mike was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army who served 15 months in Iraq as a tank commander with the 212th Cavalry. He served his country with great honor and distinction, served his church and various civic organizations and was known for his patriotism, faith, love for his family and passion for the city of Hoover, the resolution said.
Legislators present at Monday night’s dedication were state senators Jabo Waggoner and Dan Roberts and state representatives David Wheeler and David Faulkner.
Middlebrooks said Mike was doing all the right things. After serving his country, he came back to Hoover and was a valued member of the community as he raised his young family, the councilman said.
Middlebrooks said he remembered how, after Mike was killed, Heather went to downtown Birmingham to speak at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day ceremony, and she spoke on forgiveness. Her faith and testimony touched a lot of people, he said. “I hope we can all model that.”
Middlebrooks said it’s a shame that no justice was served in the judicial process related to this tragedy, “but I pray for those young men, that as evil an act as they did, I gotta believe that they’re still saveable through the blood of Jesus Christ.”
Four teenagers were charged with murder in Gilotti’s death. Hoover police said they were breaking into vehicles in Lake Cyrus when Gilotti spotted them breaking into his vehicle and was shot.
Police contended Charleston Wells of Bessemer was the shooter, but a Jefferson County jury in May 2017 found Wells not guilty of murder. A second suspect, Ahmad Jaquan Johnson of Bessemer, was identified by police as being complicit in Gilotti’s killing, but he, too, was found not guilty of murder by a jury in April 2018.
A third suspect who cooperated with police, Darrian Bryant of Birmingham, testified against Wells and Johnson. He plead guilty to nine counts of breaking and entering vehicles and had the murder charge against him dismissed. A murder charge also was dismissed against the fourth suspect, De’Ron Lucas of McCalla, after the other cases failed to produce murder convictions. Wells, Johnson and Bryant all are currently in custody on other charges.
Lynneice Washington, the district attorney for the Bessemer Division of Jefferson County, attended Monday night’s dedication ceremony and told Heather Gilotti she was sorry that her office was unable to deliver justice.
Hoover police Chief Nick Derzis said the job of police is to investigate crimes as thoroughly as they can, make arrests and testify in court when the cases go to trial. When it comes to convictions or acquittals, “juries make those types of decisions,” Derzis said. “We may strongly disagree sometimes, but that’s the American process, and we live with it.”
The police chief said it’s great to see Mike Gilotti honored with the bridge dedication because he was a great husband and father and a great American.