Officer Anthony Elliott
Officer Anthony Elliott and his family. Courtesy Peace Officers Research Association of California

One year ago this weekend, a bullet fired by a cornered suspect at a 4S Ranch strip mall struck San Diego police Sgt. Anthony Elliott in the head.

The shooting left Elliott gravely wounded, with fragments from the slug lodged in his brain in such a precarious spot that physicians could not safely remove them.

Now, 364 days later, Elliott, 37, is back on the job with the San Diego Police Department following months of grueling recovery from his near-death encounter.

“Instead of being in a hospital, I could have been in the grave,” Elliott said Friday while meeting with news crews at San Diego Police Plaza.

Elliott, who described the challenge of regaining sufficient mobility to return to police work as a “bumpy road,” gave credit for his progress to his doctors, friends, extended family, colleagues, but particularly to the woman who was by his side at the Kearny Mesa news conference.

“It’s emotional knowing everything she did,” he said of his wife, Laura, who is due to give birth to the couple’s third child this month. “I’m very blessed to have her as a wife and guardian angel.”

He also gave profuse thanks to the fellow officers who, he told reporters, saved his life when it hung in the balance in the moments after gunfire erupted at 4S Commons Town Center.

Two weeks after the shooting, which initially left Elliott without the use of his left arm and leg, physicians transferred him to a rehabilitation center in Denver, where he regained many of his motor skills.

Elliott, who went back to work in October, now has a desk assignment with the department’s SWAT unit. He also shares his story to fellow police officers and youth groups.

Though he still has to deal with after-effects from the shooting, including headaches and numbness in one of his legs, Elliott said he feels blessed by the extent of his recovery.

“It feels good to be back at work,” he told reporters during the midday briefing. “I’m happy.”

Laura Elliott described her husband’s early recovery as “survival mode,” but seeing his progress has helped.

“This is something that is forever going to change us,” she said, adding it was important to get back to a normal routine.

Along with the SDPD, she also praised the San Diego community at large for its support of her husband and their family.

This Christmas will be a re-do for them. “We’re very excited,” she added.