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Slain officer (A Walnut native) honored by Omaha Police Foundation

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April 22nd, 2016 by Ric Hanson

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – An officer killed in the line of duty has been honored by the Omaha Police Foundation with its highest award. The foundation named Kerrie Orozco as its Officer of the Year at a ceremony Thursday. She’s the first officer to be given the honor posthumously.Kerrie

Police say Marcus Wheeler fatally shot Orozco on May 20, 2015, when he opened fire on officers trying to arrest him. Wheeler was killed when another officer returned fire. Orozco, a native of Walnut, IA, was one day away from going on maternity leave to care for the daughter she had delivered prematurely three months earlier.

Orozco’s mother, Ellen Holtz, and grandmother accepted the honor for her daughter. Holtz said, “Thank you so much for remembering Kerrie.”