Community mourns 27-year-old CPD officer’s death

CHICAGO (WGN) — It was just before 4:45 a.m. Wednesday, when a Garfield Ridge woman was awakened by ambulance sirens, only to learn her 27-year-old neighbor and Chicago police officer was found dead next door.

“It was just very shocking that they were going into this neighbor’s house,” She said.

The woman, who didn’t want to give her name, said that the officer who was killed and her boyfriend — also a Chicago police officer — moved into the neighborhood last August. She describes them as being very friendly, with the officer constantly working and being focused on protecting the community.

“I know that she was just really, she felt like such a good peace here,” she said. “And she said that she loved that, a lot of the neighbors here are also law enforcement.”

According to the Chicago Police Department, the officer was found unresponsive with a gunshot wound to her head near 58th Street and Nagle Avenue. Police sources said that her boyfriend, who was home at the time, discovered her in the basement after hearing a loud noise.

CPD said the officer had been on the force for three years and was assigned to the 6th District, covering neighborhoods in Chicago Lawn, Auburn Gresham, Chatham and Englewood.

In a message to the department, CPD Supt. Larry Snelling said in part, “Her loss is a shock to her family and those who knew her and it is our responsibility to support them as they grieve.”

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office has yet to release the identity of the deceased officer.

CPD’s investigation into the officer’s death remains ongoing. No other information is available at this time.