By: Chris Caraveo
Twitter: @ChrisCaraveo31

On the early morning of July 13, Tammy Williams heard a knock at the door.

When she opened it, a Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office deputy stood in her view.

She would learn her husband, Roy Williams, was killed at the scene of a head-on collision less than 10 minutes from their home in Buckeye.

“I stood there in disbelief that this all must somehow be one big bad dream and I kept asking to wake up,” Ms. Williams stated in a letter to the Daily News-Sun. “Only I wasn’t dreaming, and this was all so very real.”

Around 4 a.m., Roy Williams, a correctional officer with the Arizona Department of Corrections, was driving to work at the Lewis prison in Buckeye.

He was heading westbound on Beloat Road near Verrado Way when a pickup truck veered into his lane and collided with his vehicle.

Tammy and Roy Williams (Submitted photo)

The other driver, identified as Goodyear resident Edward Scott, injured his leg and was taken to the hospital.

MCSO finally arrested him Sept. 18 in Youngtown in connection with the incident. They learned he had been using methamphetamine prior to the collision.

Mr. Scott is now in jail. But Tammy and her daughter Shelbee have been left yearning for more time with Roy in the two months since his death.

“Our 13-year-old daughter was inside and had no idea what happened to her daddy and that he was never coming home again,” Ms. Williams recalled about that night. “All I could think about at that moment is ‘How I get to shatter our daughter’s heart and turn her entire world upside down.’

“This was the hardest thing I will ever have to do or say to our child. No parent should ever have to tell this to their child.”

An all-around good man

Roy’s death has impacted his wife and daughter, but also his family at the Arizona DOC, where he started in 2003.

“When presented with problems, Roy had the ability to think outside of the box and come up with ways to solve them,” prison Director Charles Ryan stated in an email to employees. “He was a real professional, getting the job done right the first time, every time. Roy enjoyed supervising his work crew; he didn’t mind jumping in and getting his hands dirty while repairing, fixing, installing, patching or reconstructing. In addition to working on projects at Stiner Unit, he was always quick to lend his help at other units.

"Larger than life, Roy’s smile and laugh were contagious and his outlook was always positive," Mr. Ryan's statement continues. "He loved being around family and friends and often spoke adoringly about his wife of nearly 15 years, and his children. Roy was determined, polite, knowledgeable and an all-around good guy who delivered on his promises."

Roy Williams (Arizona DOC)

In addition, his friends, parents, siblings, nieces and nephews have lost him. Tammy also has a 24-year-old son, Preston, whom Roy had raised since he was 9.

“We all lost an incredible man that day, I lost the love of my life, my forever. But our daughter lost her best friend and her daddy. Her daddy won’t be there to see her promote from eighth grade or graduate from high school. He won’t be there to walk her down the aisle.”

A week later, his family and friends hosted a celebration of life at Rainbow Valley Elementary School.

Family tries to move on

Tammy said their world has been turned upside down and inside out since that day.

“Financially we struggle, physically and emotionally the pain and grief at times is overwhelming,” she said.

When a law enforcement officer dies in the line of duty, certain organizations like the 100 Club or C.O.P.S. are available as resources for families of the fallen.

In a case like Tammy’s, that type of support isn’t an option. However, a GoFundMe account has raised more than $6,000 since Roy’s death.

Now, Tammy is pleading for drivers to be responsible before they get behind the wheel.

Statewide in 2017, drivers under the influence of alcohol or drug made up 21.5 percent of the 1,429 fatal crashes, according to an Arizona Department of Transportation report.

“Please do not drink or do drugs and drive,” Tammy said. “It destroys and devastates families.”

And while Mr. Scott sits in jail, Tammy isn’t putting too much thought into it.

“I have forgiven this man because I must, so I can heal,” she said. “So we can heal. But I want him to know that he has devastated and destroyed our family.

“We will never again be okay because of his actions that day.”

Contact reporter Chris Caraveo at ccaraveo@newszap.com.