UPDATED 4:20 p.m.
Big Island police have identified the woman shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting that occurred early Friday off Beach Road in the Hawaiian Beaches area of the Puna district. She is identified as 26-year-old Ashley Elisna Grammer of Hilo.
PREVIOUSLY
Big Island police shot and killed a woman Friday morning after the woman used a stolen vehicle to repeatedly ram a police vehicle near Hawaiian Beaches.
According to a police news release, Puna patrol officers were conducting a routine patrol on Beach Road in the area known as Honolulu Landing at approximately 1 a.m. Friday morning. The officers encountered a 1998 Toyota 4-Runner parked on a dirt trail near the ocean and moved to investigate.
As the officers attempted to leave their vehicle, the 4-Runner abruptly reversed into the police vehicle, knocking one officer out of the vehicle. The 4-Runner then repeatedly moved back and forth, ramming into the police vehicle multiple times.
With two officers on foot and in danger of being hit or run over, three officers fired into the vehicle, striking the driver, a 26-year-old woman who later succumbed to her injuries. A passenger in the suspect vehicle, a 22-year-old woman, was uninjured.
It was later discovered that the suspect vehicle had fraudulent license plates and had in fact been reported stolen on Oct. 7 from a Hilo business.
The deceased suspect’s name has been withheld pending notification of next of kin. However, police have stated that she was a fugitive sought on two $50,000 arrest warrants.
The three officers who fired on the vehicle have been placed on administrative leave pending investigation, as is protocol.
Any witnesses to the incident are asked to contact Detective William Brown at (808) 961-2384.