A 29-year-old member of the St. Louis Police Department has become the eighth police officer to be shot in the line of duty this year alone.
Reports say Officer Tamarris L. Bohannon, a nearly four-year veteran of the department, died Sunday after he was shot in the head while responding to a shooting. A second officer was left wounded after being hit in the leg.
Police say the suspect, later identified as 43-year-old Thomas Kinworthy, forced a couple out of their St. Louis home before barricading himself inside. He was eventually taken into custody following a 12-hour standoff. Kinworthy reportedly has a long criminal history including aggravated battery with a firearm, attempted sexual battery and kidnapping and multiple drug charges, among others.
The incident follows a difficult summer for the St. Louis Police Department, as four officers were shot in a single night in June. Another officer was shot in July, and a sixth one in early August.
According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, which catalogues officers killed each year, 172 police officers have died so far in 2020, including 29 who were killed by non-accidental gunfire.