Trooper shot during traffic stop
An Arkansas
State Police trooper was shot Sunday night during a traffic stop in Rockport in
Hot Spring County, but his injuries were reportedly not life-threatening, state police said Monday in a news release.
Trooper Kyle Sheldon, who is assigned to highway patrol with Troop K out of Hot Springs, was transported to a Hot Springs hospital where he remained in stable condition Monday.
The alleged shooter, identified as Elsbeth Tresa Kittinger, 49, of Fort Worth, Texas, also sustained a gunshot wound and was treated at a Hot Springs hospital and later released into custody. She was being held in the Garland County Detention Center Monday without bond.
The shooting incident was reported to state troopers at 8:42 p.m. Sunday as Kittinger was reportedly asked to step outside the vehicle, which was stopped near the Valero station on Highway 270 near Interstate 30. It was at this time she reportedly fired at Sheldon, the release said.
Officers with the Malvern Police Department were parked near Sheldon’s patrol vehicle. Both were in the area after answering a call unrelated to the traffic stop. The officers returned gunfire at the suspect, who drove away in an older-model Dodge pickup truck.
The officers fired a second time at the suspect as she fled onto Doyle Jones Road about five miles away from the traffic stop and first shooting scene, and she was finally taken into custody, the release said.
An investigation into the shooting continues under the supervision of Arkansas State Police Criminal Investigation Division Special Agents. Investigative information from the case file being prepared by state police was to be provided to the Hot Spring County prosecuting attorney Monday to formally charge Kittinger.
According to court records, Kittinger was previously arrested Dec. 23, 2017, in Belton, Texas, on a felony charge of possession of a controlled substance, penalty group 1, which involves cocaine, meth, heroin, LSD or PCP. She was later released on
$15,000 bond and her case was still pending.
Sheldon was featured in a
March 28 post on the Arkansas
State Police Facebook page for its weekly “Why I Wear the Badge” feature, explaining how he got started in law enforcement and with the ASP.
The post stated: “Ever since I can remember I wanted to be a police officer. I am reminded by my Noni (my mother’s mother) every time I see her how she can remember me watching Cops on television (which I now know isn’t real) instead of cartoons. As I spent most of my childhood being moved from place to place, with parents who chose a lifestyle on the wrong side of the law, my passion to become a police officer grew even stronger. I recall many times seeing the police at my house, and many times I was the one that called them. When I saw the lights and the uniforms pull in the yard I knew from that point on that I was safe. I told myself that I would be the one who broke the cycle, and that I would set a new course in my family. I was determined to be successful and I never gave up.
“At the age of 15, I met the most wonderful family that adopted me of as one of their own. They saved me, and they gave me a stable environment. For the first time in my life I experienced what it was like to be a part of a family. I graduated from Glen Rose High School, and attended Henderson State University before starting a job with the Arkansas Department of Corrections. After spending five years there, I began working for the Malvern Police Department, and I worked there for almost three years. I always had a desire to be an Arkansas State Trooper and knew that was my ultimate goal. In May of 2015, my dream became a reality and I was hired by the Arkansas State Police.
“I wake up every day and put my uniform on with pride and honor. Every day I remember the road to where I am today was not easy, but I made it. I strive to be the best I can be every day, never passing up the opportunity to help someone in need. The chance to make a child smile, or show them that we are not the bad guys, gives me a great sense of community and I go home knowing I possibly made a difference. I learned early on that to get respect, I had to give respect. Many times I have seen kids in the same position I was in as a child. I take a lot of pride in trying to be their hope and their moment of safety, if only for a short time. In a time where our profession is under extreme scrutiny, I work every day to be a part of the change in my small corner of the world. I want to give my wife and children the life they deserve. I know to the world I may be just one person, but to one person I may be the whole world!”