A loved and cherished police officer who dedicated her life to serve the community where she was raised was brutally slain in the Mississippi Delta area, according to local news reports that have since made national headlines.
Detective Myiesha Stewart was responding to a call with other officers last Tuesday evening when she was shot and killed by an assailant, according to Mississippi Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell. Authorities are not revealing the circumstances leading to her death, but they have identified the suspect who was hospitalized and is in custody.
“Our community is hurting,” Greenville Mayor Mayor Errick D. Simmons said Wednesday outside City Hall. “She was one who exhibited courage. She was one who put fear aside to help someone else.”
Several others were injured in the gunfire and are being treated for their injuries. The shooting took place in Greenville, a small town close to the Arkansas state line. Reports say the shooting happened at the intersection of U.S. Highway 82 and Mississippi Highway 1.
“I am truly saddened by the tragic loss of Detective Stewart,” Gov. Tate Reeves wrote Wednesday on Twitter. “Please join me in prayer for her family, her friends, and the entire Greenville Police Department.”
Police officials are currently investigating the shooting, which is the third killing of a police officer in Mississippi this year. A reckless driver ran over Johnny Patterson while directing traffic in front of an elementary school. Another officer, Kennis Croom, was shot and killed while responding to a domestic violence call.
On Friday, Greenville police announced funeral arrangements for Stewart, including a public and law enforcement visitation on Thursday. A Sea of Blue procession will commence following the visitation.
Stewart graduated at a high school close to where she was shot and killed. She was a basketball star at Delta State University where she majored in criminal justice. She is survived by her three-year-old son.
