Officers from several police departments on Tuesday morning gathered to escort the body of a Merrillville, Indiana police officer who was killed in the line of duty.
Nickolaus Schultz, 24, died Sunday after being shot in the head two days earlier.
His body, which had been at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn since the shooting, was en route to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office at about 9:30 a.m. for a scheduled autopsy.
"Anytime we lose one of our officers it takes a part of us. We come to show support to his family, his loved ones and his fellow officers," said Lake Station Police Chief Kevin Garber.
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His body remained under constant police supervision at Christ Medical Center and will have a full police escort and flag draping anytime he's moved, explained Hammond Fraternal Order of Police spokesman Joe Hamer.
Few details have been released by authorities about the shooting on the 8200 block of Lincoln Circle that critically wounded Schultz, but they said officers were called to the area after a 33-year-old man moved back into his former condominium following his July eviction.
Police said shots were exchanged between officers and 33-year-old Michael Hrnciar during the investigation. Hrnciar, who was wearing "bullet-resistant body armor" at the time of the shooting, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. A coroner's office spokesperson ruled Hrncia's death a suicide.
