A Baltimore Police officer who was shot in the head while on duty has died.
Officer Keona Holley had been on life support for a week following the attack. Her family agreed to end her life support after her health deteriorated, the Baltimore Police Department said in a statement on Facebook. She died on Dec. 23.
The Department thanked Dr. Thomas Scalea and the medical staff at the Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center for providing Holley with “the best medical care in the world.”
“However, it was Officer Holley’s valiant fight for her life, which has brought her this far. Her strength, courage and resilience are an inspiration to us all,” the department added.
On Dec.16, the 39-year-old officer was on duty in the “high-crime” southern Baltimore neighborhood of Curtis Bay, per Fox News.
She was shot in an “ambush-style” shooting at approximately 1:30 A.M.
A shooter approached the parked police vehicle and fired from behind.
Elliot Knox, 31, and Travon Shaw, 32, have been arrested and charged with her shooting.
The men have also been charged with a second fatal shooting that occurred on the same night. Police report that Knox and Shaw left the scene of Holley’s attack and traveled 10 miles to a southwest Baltimore neighborhood where they killed Justin Johnson, 38. The second shooting occurred while police were responding to Holley’s shooting.
The motives for both shootings are not yet known.
“I offer my deepest condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Officer Keona Holley, a devoted public servant who worked selflessly to protect our community,” said Mayor Brandon Scott. “Baltimore will never forget Officer Holley’s sacrifice and commitment to making a difference in her beloved city. I ask that everyone please keep Officer Holley’s family in your prayers as they endure the holiday season without their mother, daughter, sister and loyal friend.”
"We've got to do better in this city," Lawanda Sykes, Holley’s sister said at a press conference last week. "Baltimore, we are killing ourselves. It should not be like this. At some point the city has to turn around ... not just for my sister, for all the lost souls we've had this year. My sister is fighting for her life. We will continue to fight with her and for her."
Over 320 homicides have been recorded by the Baltimore Police Department this year. Homicides are 3% higher this month than this time last year.
Holley, who has been a police officer for the last two years, leaves behind four children.
