BROCKTON, MA – A man from Massachusetts has been ordered to serve 30 to 40 years in prison after being convicted of shooting his pregnant girlfriend in the head while three young children—including their own—were inside the home, prosecutors said.
Shaun Holiday, 30, was sentenced Tuesday after a jury found him guilty of several felony charges stemming from the 2020 attack that left Amanda Holyoke, who was 27 weeks pregnant at the time, permanently blind. Holiday, who faced charges ranging from armed assault to home invasion, will serve one sentence of 25 to 30 years followed by an additional consecutive term of 5 to 10 years.
The shooting took place on September 8, 2020, at Holyoke’s third-floor apartment on North Main Street in Brockton, roughly 20 miles south of Boston. Police were called to the residence that afternoon after reports that a woman had suffered a gunshot wound to the head. Officers arriving on the scene discovered Holyoke unconscious and gravely injured, just inside the entryway.
Authorities said that Holiday had fled before police arrived. Emergency crews transported Holyoke to a local hospital, and she was later airlifted to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston due to the severity of her injuries.
Investigators followed a trail of blood leading up to Holyoke’s apartment, where they found three young children inside. As officers escorted the children from the building, one of them pointed to Holiday sitting nearby on the sidewalk, receiving medical attention for a gunshot wound to his forearm. The child identified Holiday as their father.
Detectives pieced together the sequence of events using security footage, witness statements, and data from Holiday’s GPS monitoring bracelet. Authorities determined that Holiday had gained access to the apartment earlier that day, approached Holyoke from behind, wrapped his arm around her neck, and fired a .40 caliber handgun into her right temple. The bullet exited through the left side of her face, traveling into Holiday’s own arm, according to prosecutors.
In addition to the more serious offenses, Holiday was also found guilty of firearm and ammunition violations, reckless endangerment of a child, and attempting to intimidate a witness—reportedly making efforts to prevent Holyoke from testifying at trial.
Following the jury’s guilty verdict, the court imposed strict post-incarceration requirements. Holiday will remain on probation after serving his prison sentence, with a mandate to avoid all contact with the victims unless expressly permitted by the court. He is also required to wear a GPS device, undergo a mental health evaluation, and comply with treatment recommendations.
Holyoke survived the shooting but has been left permanently blind. The case has drawn renewed attention to the dangers of intimate partner violence and the disturbing risks faced by victims, particularly when children are involved.