A west Georgia police officer walked out of a metro Atlanta rehabilitation center on Wednesday morning, more than three months after he was shot in the head during a car chase and gun battle with two armed men.
Supporters from other law enforcement agencies joined the Carrollton Police Department as they gave Sgt. Rob Holloway a hero’s welcome upon his release from the Shepherd Center and provided him with an escort home. In a statement, the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office called it “a true miracle.”
“Sergeant Rob Holloway WALKED out of the Shepherd Center so he could begin his journey back home to Carrollton,” the agency said on Facebook. “The sea of lights that escorted him home was an impressive sight to see, and the lines of people standing alongside the roadway waving blue line flags, wearing blue, holding signs, and cheering him on was a humbling experience to be a part of.”
The escort left Midtown Atlanta at 11 a.m. and arrived around noon at Adamson Square in Carrollton, where the procession was met by a crowd of cheering supporters from the community.
Holloway had been rehabilitating from a brain injury at the Shepherd Center since late April. He was transferred there two weeks after he and two other officers were wounded April 12 in a deadly and chaotic shootout with two cousins following a high-speed chase on I-20.
Credit: Carrollton Police Department
Credit: Carrollton Police Department
The pursuit began when a state trooper tried to pull over a 2015 Nissan Sentra he had clocked going 111 mph, according to the Georgia State Patrol. The trooper tried to disable the car after it sped away from the attempted traffic stop, but the driver regained control and kept going.
Local authorities joined the chase as it crossed into Carroll County. A passenger leaned out of the Sentra’s window and fired multiple rounds at the pursuing officers with a rifle, GBI officials said.
During the chase, Holloway was hit by gunfire and injured but continued his pursuit, the GBI said. He later crashed into a pole.
The Nissan eventually crashed near an elementary school in Villa Rica, and the two men ran away from the vehicle. At some point, officers located them and a gunfight ensued.
Villa Rica police Officer Chase Gordy was hit during a barrage of gunfire, and Carroll County Deputy Jay Repetto was struck when he and partner Cpl. Jamison Troutt went to help Gordy. Officers returned fire and killed 28-year-old Pier Alexander Shelton of Birmingham, Alabama, who was shown on dash camera video unloading an assault rifle into the windshield of Repetto’s and Troutt’s patrol car.
The GBI, which is still investigating the use of deadly force, has not said who fired the shot that killed him.
His cousin and passenger, Aaron Jajuan Shelton, 22, also of Birmingham, was arrested and charged with five counts of aggravated assault and three counts of aggravated battery. He is being held at the Carroll jail without bond.
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