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Murders of Keona Holley and Justin Johnson

SOLVED2021Curtis Bay and Yale Heights neighborhoods, Baltimore, Maryland3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
97 Lincoln Town Car (7811357722)
97 Lincoln Town Car (7811357722) — Credit: Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA · CC BY 2.0

In the early morning of December 16, 2021, 39-year-old Baltimore Police Department officer Keona Schannel Holley was shot while sitting in her patrol car in the Curtis Bay neighborhood of Baltimore. About 90 minutes later, 38-year-old Justin Johnson was shot six times in the back while in his car in the Yale Heights neighborhood. Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene; Holley was placed on life support at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center and died a week later after being removed from life support on December 23, 2021.

Holley, known to family as "KeKe," had joined the Baltimore Police Department in 2019 after working at the Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center, a psychiatric hospital. She had four children and one grandchild, and said she joined the force to help change the department's reputation in the community. Johnson, the fourth of seven children, had five children of his own at the time of his death.

Investigators used license plate reader data and nearby security footage to identify a car registered to Elliot Knox near the scene of Holley's shooting. Knox initially told police his car had been stolen and denied involvement, but later admitted he was present at both shootings, saying that co-defendant Travon Shaw had fired the shots. Knox led detectives to a home in the Windsor Hills neighborhood where the firearms used in the killings — a Glock 22 and an AR-style pistol — were recovered along with ammunition, gloves, and masks. DNA evidence on the weapons matched both Knox and Shaw, and shell casings from both crime scenes matched the recovered guns.

Both Knox and Shaw had prior criminal records involving armed robbery, and Shaw had been awaiting trial on a 2020 firearms charge at the time of the shootings. Shaw was convicted of all counts in Johnson's killing in October 2023 and pleaded guilty to all counts in Holley's killing in March 2024, receiving a sentence of life in prison plus 20 years without parole. Knox was found guilty in March 2024 on eight of nine counts, including two counts of first-degree murder, but was acquitted of using a firearm to kill Holley; he was sentenced in June 2024 to two consecutive life sentences without parole.

Holley's death prompted proposed legislation in the Maryland Senate, the "Officer Keona Holley Public Safety Act," which would have made those convicted of assisting in the murder of a police officer ineligible for parole. The bill was later amended to instead expand a scholarship fund for families of killed public safety workers, prompting Holley's family to request her name be removed from the legislation. The block of Pennington Avenue where Holley was shot was later dedicated as "Officer Keona Holley Way." Holley was the first Baltimore police officer killed in the line of duty since Detective Sean Suiter in 2017.

Key facts

Victims
Keona Schannel Holley, Justin Johnson
Date
2021
Location
Curtis Bay and Yale Heights neighborhoods, Baltimore, Maryland
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2021-12-16

    Officer Keona Holley is shot in her patrol car in Curtis Bay, Baltimore; approximately 90 minutes later, Justin Johnson is shot and killed in his car in Yale Heights, Baltimore.

  2. 2021-12-20

    Travon Shaw is denied bond.

  3. 2021-12-21

    Elliot Knox is denied bond.

  4. 2021-12-22

    Justin Johnson's funeral is held; a community vigil for Holley, still on life support, takes place the same day.

  5. 2021-12-23

    Keona Holley is removed from life support and pronounced dead.

  6. 2022-01-11

    Holley's funeral is held at the Baltimore Convention Center.

  7. 2022-03

    Maryland state senator Robert Cassilly proposes the Officer Keona Holley Public Safety Act.

  8. 2022-04-29

    The 4400 block of Pennington Avenue is dedicated as 'Officer Keona Holley Way.'

  9. 2023-10

    Travon Shaw is convicted on all counts in the killing of Justin Johnson.

  10. 2024-03-06

    Elliot Knox is found guilty on eight of nine counts, including two counts of first-degree murder, but acquitted of using a firearm to kill Holley.

  11. 2024-03-28

    Travon Shaw pleads guilty to all counts in the killing of Keona Holley and is sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years.

  12. 2024-06-04

    Elliot Knox is sentenced to two back-to-back life sentences without parole.

Best coverage

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People

  • Travon Shaw

    CONVICTED

    Convicted on all counts in Johnson's killing in October 2023 and pleaded guilty on all counts in Holley's killing in March 2024; sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years without parole.

  • Elliot Knox

    CONVICTED

    Convicted in March 2024 on eight of nine counts, including two counts of first-degree murder, in the killings of Holley and Johnson; sentenced in June 2024 to two consecutive life sentences without parole. Acquitted of using a firearm to kill Holley.

  • Keona Schannel Holley

    VICTIM

    39-year-old Baltimore Police Department officer fatally shot on duty on December 16, 2021; died December 23, 2021.

  • Justin Johnson

    VICTIM

    38-year-old man fatally shot in his car in Yale Heights, Baltimore, on December 16, 2021.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Archival records

  • 97 Lincoln Town Car (7811357722)

    archival location

    97 Lincoln Town Car (7811357722)

    Credit: Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA · CC BY 2.0 · Source

  • Scene of Keona Holley's murder

    crime scene press

    Scene of Keona Holley's murder

    Credit: Charlotte Jackson · CC BY 4.0 · Source

Places

Curtis Bay and Yale Heights neighborhoods, Baltimore, Maryland

39.2156, -76.5658

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
In December 2021, Baltimore Police Officer Keona Holley and civilian Justin Johnson were fatally shot 90 minutes apart in separate Baltimore neighborhoods by the same two men, Elliot Knox and Travon Shaw, who were later convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison.
Where did the murders happen?
Curtis Bay and Yale Heights neighborhoods, Baltimore, Maryland.
Who was convicted?
Travon Shaw (Convicted on all counts in Johnson's killing in October 2023 and pleaded guilty on all counts in Holley's killing in March 2024; sentenced to life in prison plus 20 years without parole.) and Elliot Knox (Convicted in March 2024 on eight of nine counts, including two counts of first-degree murder, in the killings of Holley and Johnson; sentenced in June 2024 to two consecutive life sentences without parole. Acquitted of using a firearm to kill Holley.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved. Last verified July 2026.
More cases in Maryland

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDICMurders of Keona Holley and Justin JohnsonWikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — CBS NewsCBS News · 2026-07-07
  3. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — The Washington PostThe Washington Post · 2026-07-07

Record history

First published
JUL 07, 2026
Last verified against sources
JUL 07, 2026