High Point Police mourn death of recruit Drake Shinabarger, 28

High Point police are mourning Drake Shinabarger, 28, whose death cut short a training path that had already carried him through the High Point Fire Department, the National Guard, the U.S. Army and the U.S. Army Reserve. He died unexpectedly over the weekend, leaving the department without a recruit who was scheduled to graduate from Basic Law Enforcement Training in June.

Shinabarger joined High Point police in the summer of 2025, part of the department’s effort to keep filling its ranks as agencies across the Triad compete for recruits and trained officers. His background tied him to two of the city’s most visible public-safety institutions, and his death now reaches beyond one workplace into the broader network of first responders and veterans in High Point.

The department said his time with High Point police was brief but his impact was lasting. That statement carries added weight in a department where more than two dozen employees have served in the military, a connection that helps explain why Shinabarger’s death is resonating across both the police and military communities.

The loss also comes at a moment when High Point police are trying to build on recent progress. In the department’s 2025 annual report, released in February, Chief Curtis Cheeks III said overall crime in the city fell 9% last year. Property crime dropped 21%, while violent crime rose 6%.

Cheeks said the department plans to expand its wellness program, strengthen community partnerships and use new technology in 2026. Those goals depend on steady recruiting and retention, making the death of a recruit in training more than a personal tragedy. It also removes a future officer from a department that says its mission is to make High Point a safe city by developing leaders and employees in crimefighting, community engagement, training and professional policing.

For Guilford County, Shinabarger’s death is a stark reminder of how closely High Point’s police, fire and military communities overlap. A young man who had already built a record of public service was preparing for one more step, and the department now faces that loss while continuing the work of staffing the city and supporting the people who protect it.