A police officer who had only been on the job for two years was gunned down late Tuesday night after a murder suspect barricaded himself in his Alabama home.

The shooter, identified as Robert Hollie, also died, though it was unclear if he was killed by officers or shot himself.

The slain officer was identified as Justin Billa, who joined the force in January 2016 and won the Mobile Police Department's "Officer of the Month" award in June 2016, MPD Chief Lawrence Battiste said.

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The incident began when a woman was found dead in the middle of the road in Tuesday night.

Police quickly identified Hollie, the slain woman's ex-husband, as a "person of interest" in that killing and went to a home in the Toulminville neighborhood associated with Hollie

Billa and other officers were establishing a perimeter around Hollie's residence when Billa was shot, police said.
After shooting Billa, Hollie barricaded himself in the home as SWAT units descended on the area, police said. The barricade situation ended approximately two hours later when the suspect died.

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Officers were seen early Wednesday embracing and consoling each other outside University of South Alabama Medical Center before Billa's death was announced.

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Twelve other officers have been killed deliberately in the line of duty so far this year

In 2017, 52 officers were intentionally killed, including 46 who died by gunfire

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