Officer shot in standoff shows improvement

ORLANDO, Fla. (FOX 35 WOFL) - There is some promising news coming two-and-a-half weeks after an Orlando police officer was shot in the head during a standoff during a hostage situation. . 

Officer Kevin Valencia has been in a coma suffering what wife Meghan calls a very significant brain injury.  Last week, FOX 35 confirmed that Officer Valencia was breathing on his own. 

"I have some truly wonderful news. I promised I wouldn't cry.  So Kevin, while still in a coma, is responsive," she said during a news conference on Wednesday.  

She said her husband is displaying small gestures, such as signaling a thumbs up and squeezing hands.

"I know that they had said he was expected to live, but he actually wasn't.  So the fact that he is moving and responding is truly amazing. It's God answering prayers."

Prayers from the community and these new responses from Officer Valencia are giving Meghan new found hope. 

"I was just so elated. I mean, you choose to spend the rest of your life with this person.  The idea that this still can happen, no words can even express how ecstatic I was."

Thursday begins their next step.  Officer Valencia will be transferred to the Shepard's Center, a Spinal Cord & Brain Injury Rehabilitation Center in Atlanta, Georgia. 

 

 

 

"I just can't wait to see what he's going to do next. Because its just incredible that he's moving and responding and I'm so happy he's coming back to us," said Meghan.

Eleven other officers on Officer Valencia's squad and their sergeant returned to duty this week for the first time since a hostage standoff where Valencia was injured.  Chief John Mina says this is an important part of the healing process.  

If you’d like to support the family of Officer Valencia, a Go Fund Me account has been set up by the Orlando Police Heroes Foundation.