On the late morning of May 20, 2015, 29-year-old Omaha Police Detective Kerrie Orozco was shot and killed while serving on the Metro Area Fugitive Task Force. It was to be her last shift before maternity leave; her premature daughter Olivia Ruth, born in February, was due to come home from the hospital. Orozco, a seven-year veteran known for volunteer work with Special Olympics, Boys and Girls Clubs, and mentoring Girl Scouts, was struck in the chest above her ballistic vest after officers approached a wanted man, 26-year-old Marcus D. Wheeler, near Read Street and Martin Avenue.

Wheeler opened fire with a semi-automatic handgun fitted with a high-capacity drum magazine. Officers returned fire; both Orozco and Wheeler were taken to Creighton University Medical Center in extremely critical condition and were later pronounced dead. The handgun was traced to a straw purchase by Wheeler’s girlfriend in Georgia, and Wheeler had prior federal convictions that barred firearm possession. Did anyone who knew Detective Orozco or was in that neighborhood that day come forward with information about the shooting?