Baltimore Officer Keona Holley dead, one week after being shot in ambush

Baltimore Police Officer Keona Holley died Thursday one week after being shot in an ambush while she sat in her patrol car, the police department announced.

Holley, a 39-year-old mother of four who joined the police department two years ago to make a difference, was shot in the head while working an overtime shift early in the morning of Dec. 16 in Curtis Bay. She had been on life support at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center.

The Baltimore Police Department said in a news release Thursday evening that her family, in consultation with doctors, made “the most difficult decision” to remove her from life support. She was pronounced dead shortly after, police said.

Officials including Police Commissioner Michael Harrison and Mayor Brandon Scott offered their condolences Thursday.

“Baltimore will never forget Officer Holley’s sacrifice and commitment to making a difference in her beloved city,” Scott said. “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.”

Two individuals have been charged in the shooting, as well as a second killing, that of 38-year-old Justin Johnson in Southwest Baltimore, which occurred around 90 minutes after Holley’s. Elliott Knox, one of the suspects, was tracked down using video from nearby cameras. Knox allegedly admitted to being there to detectives and informed them where to look for the weapons used.

However, no motive has been established, and the police inquiry is ongoing.

Knox claimed Johnson was slain because he owed money to Travon Shaw, who he claimed was responsible for both shootings. In charge filings, however, officers stated that cartridge casings from two different types of weapons were used, and that footage from Curtis Bay showed both men approaching the area where Holley was shot. Since Holley and Johnson were shot, at least seven people have been killed in Baltimore.