Twitter Breann Leath and her son.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) has confirmed that one of their officers, Breann Leath, was shot and killed in the line of duty on Thursday afternoon, April 9. Fox59 reported that police were called to the 1800 block of Edinburge Square in the city’s east side following a domestic disturbance call.
Officers arrived at the apartment, and someone inside fired shots, according to Fox59. Leath and a woman inside the house were both hit. Leath was brought to the hospital, where she died. She was 24 years old and the mother of a young boy. Police said they have a suspect in custody and confirmed that the other woman shot had non-life-threatening injuries.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police & the Governor of Indiana Were Among Those Posting Tributes to Leath
It is with a heavy heart that @IMPD_Chief announces the untimely death of @IMPDEast Officer Breann Leath.
Officer Leath was a loving mother. A veteran. Daughter of a public servant family. And the example of what an @IMPDnews officer should be.
She will be sorely missed.
The IMPD Twitter account posted a tribute to Leath. They wrote: “It is with a heavy heart that the IMPD Chief announces the untimely death of IMPD East Officer Breann Leath. Officer Leath was a loving mother. A veteran. Daughter of a public servant family. And the example of what an IMPD officer should be. She will be sorely missed.”
They also added another tribute to their Facebook page:
They wrote: “Always the shining example of what an IMPD Officer should be… Doing the right things for the right reason. Officer Leath… we will miss you. (Especially your smile) Rest Easy, sister. We’ve got the watch from here. EOW 4/9/20”
The Governor of Indiana, Eric Holcomb, released a statement on Twitter:
Officer Leath gave her life as she answered the call of duty. Janet and I are heartbroken for her family, friends and the @IMPDnews. 1/2
He wrote: “Officer Leath gave her life as she answered the call of duty. Janet and I are heartbroken for her family, friends and the IMPD. I ask every Hoosier to join me in honoring Officer Leath’s courageous service and dedication to her community. She will be forever remembered for being the finest among us.”
Breann Leath Came From a Law Enforcement Family & Became an Officer in November 2018
According to the Fox59 report, Leath had wanted to be a law enforcement officer her whole life and came from a law enforcement family. Her father is a deputy sheriff and her mother works with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office as a control operator.
Before joining the IMPD, she served in the Army National Guard.
She graduated as a police officer in November 2018, posting about it on Twitter:
On March 18, 2019, the IMPD East shared a story on their Facebook of Leath going above and beyond to serve her community:
In the post, they wrote:
Recently Officer Breann Leath was dispatched to a residence of a 79 year old citizen who wanted to report being the victim of fraud.
Officer Leath arrived and discovered the the victim was taken advantage of by someone close to him while he was sick…. and that the person took a extremely large amount of money (in the thousands) out of the victims account. The victim also stated that the person also used to bring him food from time to time but had since stopped.
Although Officer Leath could not repay the citizen the lost money… she thought to herself… “How can I make this situation a little better?” “How can I bring a little light to this situation?”
Officer Leath asked the victim what his favorite restaurant was.. and he told her Arby’s. Officer Leath went to Arby’s and bought the gentleman dinner and returned to his residence unexpectedly. Officer Leath continued to go above and beyond and took extra time to explain online bill paying and other resources available to him to help him regain some of his independence. The gentleman was very thankful for Officer Leath’s service.
We want to say thank you as well to Officer Leath, your compassion and empathy is an excellent example of Community Policing and reflects the core values of IMPD.
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