A Detroit police officer was shot in the head and a suspect is dead after a gunfight erupted when police responded to a domestic-violence call at an apartment complex Sunday night on the city’s west side.
A Detroit police officer was shot in the head and a suspect is dead after a gunfight erupted when police responded to a domestic-violence call at an apartment complex Sunday night on the city’s west side.
The injured officer, a 14-year veteran, was shot in the back of the head and remains in « very serious condition » at a local hospital, Detroit Police Chief James Craig said in a Facebook Live video this morning.
The officer and his partner arrived at about 10: 30 p.m. at the apartment complex on the 10000 block of Joy Road near Wyoming — where there was no indication of weapons involved — and knocked on a door.
« Someone in this apartment building responded, who was not involved with the domestic violence incident, (and) began firing shots at the officers, » Craig said.
The man, aged 41-45 and armed with a possibly .25-caliber semiautomatic weapon, was shot multiple times when the officers returned fire. He died at the scene.
This is the eighth time a police officer has been « either shot or murdered in the line of duty in the city of Detroit » since September, Craig said, adding that it’s « certainly high-risk work that they do each and every day. »
He said he met with the surgeon who operated on the injured officer, that there could be some swelling on the brain, and « it’s going to be a tough couple days. »
He also met with the officer’s partner, who’s six months out of the police academy.
Asked how officers are doing, Craig responded: « They’re hurting, and our community is hurting. »
He said police believe the incident is isolated to the one suspect, and they’re investigating why he shot at the officers. He also said it’s unknown whether the suspect had any prior criminal history.
Contact Robert Allen at rallen@freepress.com.
