Jan. 25th update: Officer David Moore was placed on life support and his family is making organ donation arrangements following an MRI scan that revealed considerable damage to his brain and spine. He is not expected to recover from his injuries.
Indianapolis - A Metro Police officer who was shot in the face during a traffic stop Sunday remains in critical condition at Wishard Hospital Monday night.
Wishard is a level one trauma center, and treating patients with gunshot wounds is routine. Doctors there specialize in the care Officer David Moore needs.
9:00 am Monday marked that Officer Moore survived the first 24 hours following his injuries. Moore is in a medically induced coma and doctors are trying to keep him stabilized.
The 29-year-old North District officer was on duty and by himself when he was hit by four bullets after pulling over a driver in a suspected stolen vehicle. The two hits that are most concerning to doctors are the two to the face - one to his chin, one to his left cheek. Moore's father said at one point, his son did not have a pulse and paramedics revived him in the ambulance on the way to the hospital.
Moore's blood pressure Sunday was very erratic. Doctors say right now there are many uncertainties.
"It's way too early to speculate what's going to happen," said Dr. Gerardo Gomez, chief of trauma at Wishard Hospital.
"Our goal is to keep him stable. If we get stability, we can do further studies to the extent of his injuries," said Dr. Ben Rodgers, Neurotrauma, Wishard Hospital.
Issues right now include swelling and infection. The bullets exited the brain, and it's unclear what kind of collateral damage there is.
"The doctors continue to evaluate his injuries, but they have difficulties in getting him to an MRI machine because of his fragile condition, so they're still holding out hope, but there's really not much they can do unless they can get him to the MRI to see exactly where the damage is and how much damage there is," said FOP President Bill Owensby. "So it's a little concerning for the family today, it's going to be a rough day for them."
The officer's family has spent countless hours at his bedside. His father, Spencer, is a retired IMPD lieutenant and his mother is a patrol sergeant still active on the force.
Moore has some advantages in the fact that he's young, he received the appropriate care quickly and it appears the bullets did not impact the spinal cord.
Monday, there was a steady stream of officers coming to the hospital to support one of their own and his family.
"We've had so many officers going out to see him in ICU that they've had to stage at times in the auditorium there at Wishard Hospital," said IMPD Sgt. Paul Thompson.
