Arlington Woman, Jeweler Sells Pendants to Honor Officer Laboy

Long after the ambulances and TV crews are gone, after police operations return to normal, Alexandria officer Peter Laboy still suffers.

Laboy, who was shot in the head Feb. 27 during a traffic stop in Old Town, is back home, recuperating with family. Local residents who took the shooting to heart continue to raise funds for the family.

That includes Vicki Forness of Arlington, owner of B&C Jewelers at the Bradlee Shopping Center in Alexandria. Forness, along with friend and loyal customer Karen Bune, is selling a badge pendant honoring Laboy.

All proceeds for pendant sales go to Laboy’s family.

“I just thought it was kind of perfect,” Forness said. “It was the badge, symbolic of the police, the name on it, the fact that he’s been recuperating and coming through, doing much better than anyone expected. He still has a long way to go, and he needs the support and care of the community, which we decided to be a part of.”

The unisex badge pendant is sterling silver, with the words “Superman,” Laboy’s favorite character, at the top; “police” in the middle; and “Motor 8,” his call number, at the bottom. It sells for $47.50.

The idea came from Bune, who has spent her career in criminal justice—she now teaches at Marymount and George Mason universities—and felt particularly impacted when Laboy was shot. A freelance writer, as well, she penned several articles to raise awareness about the need for donations.

“But that wasn’t enough for me,” Bune said. “I came up with the idea that it could be nice of people could wear something that would symbolize him and would also be a conversation piece that could raise money. So I had the idea of developing a badge pendant, but I needed someone to cooperate and collaborate with me on it, because I couldn’t produce it.”

That’s when she approached Forness. At first, Bune asked for just one for herself. That spurred a discussion about selling them for charity.

The shop has sold about 25 pendants so far and hopes to sell many more. Laboy and his wife each wear one, the women said.

“It gives me a good feeling, because you feel like you’ve made an impact in some small way, just to know you’ve reached out to him,” Bune said.

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