LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Janelle Briscoe said she doesn't have enough time or words to fully describe her best friend, Deidre Mengedoht. But on Friday afternoon, she tried.
"I cannot remember the date of when I met Deidre, but I can say that I can never recall a time where she wasn't a part of my life," Briscoe said. "She is and always will be my best friend."
Briscoe met Mengedoht about 20 years ago through church, and since then, their friendship blossomed.
"She was an amazing friend to have," she said. "All of my stories start off with 'Deidre and I.' She would say and do the silliest things, and you could not help but love her and laugh with her. She really did care about people, and how the community has responded to her passing is a reflection of that fact."
Mengedoht, an LMPD detective, was killed when police say a driver under the influence crashed into her police cruiser on I-64 on Christmas Eve. Now, just days later, that sudden loss is still setting in for her best friend.
"I'll always and forever be proud of her," Briscoe said.
Briscoe said she'll remember Mengedoht as an impeccable detective, an officer who humanized the badge as she worked in LMPD's Second Division, which includes several neighborhoods in west Louisville.
"I think she wanted to change the narrative, because certain areas around Louisville get a bad rap, and she's like 'No, these are people, and they're good people,'" Briscoe said.
Briscoe will also remember Mengedoht as a loving mother to a young son.
"Deidre loved her son more than words could ever describe," she said. "She said he is her heart outside of her chest and that he lights up her whole world."
And she'll remember Mengedoht as a selfless friend.
"She was known for asking how she could pray for you, and she was such a kind and generous person," Briscoe said.
Outside of work, according to Briscoe, Mengedoht enjoyed working out, going to Louisville games and spending time with her son.
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