Officer leaves hospital amid sea of blue after being shot
YONKERS, New York -- A Yonkers police officer is recovering after being shot when she approached a car during a traffic stop Monday night.
Authorities say 26-year-old Officer Kayla Maher, who has been on the force two years, was shot in the jaw. She was rushed to Jacobi Hospital in the Bronx in serious but stable condition, and she is expected to make a full recovery. She left the hospital Tuesday afternoon amid a sea of blue and a round of applause. Maher hugged her cheering colleagues before getting into an SUV and being driven from the scene.
WATCH: Officer Maher's release from the hospital in the video below
The shooting happened around 8 p.m., as police responded to calls of a suspicious vehicle that had been sitting for over an hour at Marshall Road and Ridge Drive with two men inside.
When the officer and her partner walked up to the car, one of the men inside began shooting. The officers returned fire, hitting the suspected gunman. Maher was alert and speaking as she was rushed to the hospital. She was reported to be in good spirits Tuesday morning, city officials said.
WATCH: Officer Maher's rescue by fellow officers caught on camera
"It could have been much worse," Yonkers Police Commissioner Charles Gardner said. "Thank God the officer right now did not sustain a life-threatening injury. She was struck. She's in serious, but stable condition, but thank God it looks like she's going to be OK."
The gunman, who police say had a pending warrant, is hospitalized in serious but stable condition. Another suspect was taken into custody at the scene.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with Officer Maher and her family," Gardner said. "The bravery and courage displayed by our officers at the scene was nothing short of heroic, and I am very proud of them."
Maher comes from a law enforcement family. Her mother is a retired NYPD sergeant.
"She is gutsy and you can see it, and she is certainly what we have come to expect from our department," Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano said.
Police recovered a handgun at the scene.
The commotion caught the attention of neighbors.
"We just heard bang, bang, bang, and it just seemed like it was a semiautomatic that just kept going off," witness Carmen Feliciano said. "And then we heard all the cops coming, turned out all the lights, and we called 911. And they said that there was an active shooter and to stay indoors. But even after the cops showed up, the shooting, you just continued to hear it."
The gun battle terrified neighborhood residents.
"We just turned off the lights so it would be quiet, just so no one could see in because we had no idea what was going on," one resident said. "We just sat and listened and were amazed to hear this many gunshots.".
The investigation is ongoing.
