Aurora officer stabbed in head during shooting released from hospital
An Aurora Police Department officer who was stabbed multiple times in the head during an early April shooting was released from the hospital on Wednesday.
Mark Moore, who joined the department in 2012, sustained life-threatening injuries during the altercation in which he shot and killed 23-year-old Amare Garlington on April 9, department officials said. His release came after multiple surgeries and nearly two weeks of rehabilitation.
“He continues to have a long road to recovery, but today marks a powerful step forward,” department officials wrote in a Wednesday social media post.
Moore’s K-9, Cyrus, was also stabbed and received emergency veterinary treatment after the incident, officials said.
Garlington had a history of legal and mental health issues, family members said, up to the time of his death.
Aurora officers responded to an apartment complex in the 14000 block of East Stanford Circle around 3:15 p.m. that day, following a 911 call that Garlington was experiencing a mental health crisis and was threatening to harm himself and others in the home, according to an initial news release.
After officers tried to talk to Garlington and solve the situation peacefully, they said, the man ran “full speed” at them with what authorities dubbed a “butcher knife,” according to the release. He then stabbed the K-9, Cyrus, before striking Moore in the head.
Other officers fired less-lethal tools — such as tasers and 40mm launchers with foam projectiles — to try and subdue Garlington, but they had no effect, authorities said. Moore then shot Garlington several times, and they both collapsed to the ground.
Garlington was later pronounced dead in the hospital, authorities said.
A fundraiser was created in support of Moore and his family while he continues his road to recovery, and had already raised over $16,000 as of Wednesday afternoon.
The department also invited the public to another fundraising event for Moore’s family on May 12 at the Chick-fil-A on 5600 S. Parker Road in Aurora. Further details on the event will be announced soon on APD social media pages.