ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A police officer in Florida has died almost three years after being left in a coma from a gunshot to the face, attacked while responding to a domestic violence call in which the suspect killed four children before taking his own life.
Orlando Police Officer Kevin Valencia died on Monday, Police Chief Orlando Rolon said in a statement.
“Officer Valencia risked his life for people he didn’t even know — a risk that many in the law enforcement profession take without question,” Rolon said. “Since that tragic night, Officer Valencia has been fighting for his life with his family by his side.”
Valencia was responding to a domestic violence call from Gary Lindsey’s girlfriend when the suspect wounded Valencia as the officer attempted to kick down the door to Lindsey’s apartment in June 2018. A daylong standoff followed with Lindsey holed up in an apartment with four children ranging in age from 1 to 12. Their mother was Lindsey’s girlfriend.
When officers finally entered the apartment, they found the children dead and Lindsey deceased from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Of Valencia, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer tweeted: “He put his life on the line and made the ultimate sacrifice.”
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