Wife makes new video appeal for tips in Bardstown officer's slaying
In a new video, Amy Ellis, the wife of slain Bardstown police officer Jason Ellis, describes the added pain of living with the unsolved case while appealing to those with information to help the family heal.
Jason Ellis, 33, was killed on May 25, 2013. He was shot as he left his department pool car to remove tree limbs from a Blue Grass Parkway exit. No one has been charged in the homicide.
Police suspect that the limbs were put on the exit deliberately so Ellis would stop. In addition, Ellis' service weapon was holstered, indicating that he hadn't seen what was coming, police said last year. Investigators working to solve the murder say they think more than one person was involved.
The Kentucky State Police are investigating, and periodically, new videos are released to remind the public of Ellis' loss and the need for information that might help solve the case.
"Time cannot close our wound; it has been two years since our family was devastated by the senseless ambush of my husband," Amy Ellis said in the latest video.
In an announcement accompanying the video, KSP spokesman Jeff Gregory said he hoped that Friday's release would generate new leads. The video again will be shared on social networks YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.
"Someone somewhere knows something about this murder," Gregory said. "Even the smallest detail could be the information we need to make an arrest."
Tips can be provided by calling the state police Elizabethtown post at (270) 766-5078 or toll free at 1-800-222-5555. Emails can be sent to EllisCaseETips@ky.gov. You also can text a tip to 67283 after typing KSPTIP and the information in the message field.
There is a $218,000 reward for tips leading to an arrest and conviction.
Family and friends cannot heal without knowing who killed the officer and why, Amy Ellis said: "We still struggle with the need to understand before the healing can truly begin."
This story was originally published May 22, 2015 at 1:05 PM with the headline "Wife makes new video appeal for tips in Bardstown officer's slaying."