LAPD Sgt., Mother Of 3, Dies Of Coronavirus Complications

LOS ANGELES, CA — Los Angeles police are mourning the death of Sgt. Amelia "Terry" Martinez, the fifth Los Angeles Police Department employee to die of complications from COVID-19, Chief Michel Moore announced Wednesday. She was 53.

Martinez, a mother of three, who was assigned to the Hollenbeck Division, died Tuesday, he said.

She is the third LAPD officer and the fifth LAPD employee to died from COVID-19.

“Sgt. Martinez was a bright shining star for Hollenbeck Division,” according to a statement issued by the LAPD. “Her passing is a loss for not only her brothers and sisters here in the Department, but for the people of Los Angeles who she dedicated her life to protecting and serving.”

"We thank you for your service and you will be greatly missed," added Moore. "May God welcome you home and may God bless the Los Angeles Police Department."


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Martinez is survived by her sons, Robert and Steven, and daughter Amanda Lara, as well as her mother and siblings, Moore said.

The other LAPD employees who have died of coronavirus complications are Police Service representative Raymond Guerrero, 24, who died earlier this month; Sgt. Fred Cueto, a 22-year veteran who died in December; and detention Officer Erica McAdoo, 39, and Officer Valentin Martinez, 45, who both died last July.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on the Los Angeles Patch