WASHINGTON, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- A police officer was shot and killed Wednesday morning in U.S. state of Maryland, according to the Prince George's County Police Department.

The shooting occurred near Chadds Ford Road and Gillmore Greens Court in Brandywine, southeast of Washington, D.C., authorities said.

The officer, later identified as Mujahid Ramzziddin, was killed while attempting to protect a woman who had been threatened in a domestic situation, Prince George's County Police said in a series of tweets.

Ramzziddin was assigned to the police department' s Special Operations Division, Harbor Unit, said a tweet. "He served his community for 14 years."

Maryland State Police tweeted that their thoughts and prayers are with the Prince George's County Police Department.

The suspect who killed Ramzziddin was shot and killed by responding law enforcement, according to police.

The death of the Maryland officer followed an early-morning murder in state of Alabama.

Justin Billa, an officer with the Mobile Police Department, was gunned down after a murder suspect barricaded himself in his Alabama home.

The suspect, identified as Robert Hollie, also died. It was not immediately clear if he was killed by officers or shot himself.

Since the start of this year, at least 18 police officers across the United States have died while on duty, with 13 of those deaths being firearms-related, according to data from National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.