VIDEO: Paralyzed ID Officer Headed to Rehab After Shooting, Amputation
Boise, ID, police officer Cpl. Kevin Holtry will transfer to a specialty spinal cord injury rehabilitation hospital in Colorado after a November shooting that wounded another officer and killed a police K-9, according to a video Holtry released Monday.
In the video, shown for the first time Monday afternoon at City Hall West, Holtry explained that he was paralyzed below the waist after being shot multiple times. He said his left leg was amputated above the knee and described his spinal cord as "maybe bruised." He'll be taken to Craig Hospital near Denver, a facility that specializes in rehabilitation, spinal cord injuries, and traumatic brain injuries, reports the Idaho Statesman.
At a press conference Monday, Boise Police Department Deputy Chief Eugene Smith declined to comment on whether Holtry might eventually rejoin BPD in a working capacity. "We're not going to make any sort of decisions, discussions, any sort of conversation about his future, other than Kevin Holtry is a Boise police officer, will be a Boise police officer, and we intend to keep him as a Boise police officer as long as he desires," Smith said.
Holtry expressed gratitude for an outpouring of support. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart,” he said, thanking his fellow officers, paramedics, and employees at Saint Alphonsus hospital in Boise.
Over $75,000 has been raised in a GoFundMe campaign for the officer.
Related:
2 Boise Officers and K-9 Wounded, Suspect Killed in Friday Gunfight
