An off-duty sheriff’s detective who was helping an elderly woman cross the street was struck and killed by a vehicle in Valley Village Sunday morning, officials say.

The detective was identified as Amber Joy Leist, a 12-year veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. She was the 41-year-old mother of two sons, ages 17 and 20.

Sheriff Alex Villanueva said Leist was stopped in her car near the intersection of Riverside Drive and Whitsett Avenue around 11 a.m. when she saw a woman stumble as she tried to cross the street. Leist put her car in park and went to help the woman cross.

While returning to her vehicle, she was struck by a car heading eastbound on Riverside after the light had turned green, Villanueva said.

Leist was brought to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Hatzalah of Los Angeles, Misaskim of Los Angeles and the LA Sheriff Dept Chaplain are all working to arrange a proper Jewish burial.

“Today the LA County Sheriff’s Department is grieving,” said Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva in a statement on Twitter. “We are shocked and stunned by the sudden loss of a family member … She was an outstanding detective who lead by example.”

Police are investigating the circumstances around the accident but the driver involved in Leist’s death stopped at the scene and was cooperating with investigators.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)