A drill sergeant at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston was shot to death on New Year’s Day, according to Army officials.
Drill Sergeant Jessica Mitchell, assigned to the U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence as a 68E Dental Specialist, died at University Hospital San Antonio at roughly 3 a.m. after suffering multiple gunshot wounds along I-10 Friday, KSAT reported.
The hospital notified the sergeant’s unit that she had been the victim of several gunshot wounds while on holiday leave.
San Antonio Police Department officers were sent to the scene after a shooting was reported near West Avenue on I-10. KSAT said local police and the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division are currently investigating the incident.
In August 2019, Sergeant Mitchell was assigned to MEDCoE after serving at a JBSA dental clinic since late 2017.
“We are devastated by the tragic loss of Drill Sergeant Jessica Mitchell. Our sincere condolences go out to her family and friends. We are focused on supporting Drill Sergeant Mitchell’s family as well as her soldiers during this extremely difficult time,” said Maj. Gen. Dennis LeMaster, the MEDCoE Commanding General.
The New Year’s shooting comes on the heels of one of the United States’ deadliest years, as Americans battled the COVID-19 pandemic, civil unrest, and rising crime in some of the nation’s largest cities.
Cities nationwide saw an unprecedented crime wave that authorities believe was likely fueled by the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread civil unrest sparked by the death of George Floyd while in custody of the Minneapolis Police Department.
In New York City, killings jumped 41 percent in 2020, recording a staggering 447 homicides and the largest number in nearly 10 years. The number of people shot in the city reached a 14-year high, as well, doubling the total in 2019.
On the west coast, Seattle saw 47 murders, 19 more than 2019, marking the highest homicide rates since 2008.
According to Fox News, 81 people have been killed in Minneapolis this year, a jump in 72 percent from the same period last year. Philadelphia had a staggering 490 murders this year, nearly breaking the former record of 504 in 1990.
