A man who shot a Tacoma police officer was killed after a standoff with authorities that lasted for hours, officials said.
A Pierce County sheriff’s deputy killed the suspect, who had been using two children as a shield, Detective Ed Troyer said.
“We didn’t want the kids to get hurt on top of everything that happened. Unfortunately, such a horrible situation, this could have ended a lot worse,” Troyer said. “The suspect’s deceased. The kids are safe. That’s really what we’re very thankful for.”
The officer, who has not yet been publicly identified, was responding to a domestic dispute Wednesday afternoon when he was shot.
Authorities believed the suspected gunman was alone inside the home, although at one point there were other people inside, including children.
“We were able to remove some of the people that were in the house,” Cool said, adding that gunshots had been heard inside the residence.
Police are maintaining a large perimeter outside the home, the Tacoma Police Department said on its Twitter account Thursday morning.
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee sent his condolences to the family of the slain officer via Twitter.
“Trudi and I send our thoughts and prayers to the family and loved ones of the Tacoma police officer killed tonight in the line of duty,” Gov. Inslee said.
The name of the officer, who died around 9 p.m. local time, has not been released. He was a 45-year-old man who joined the department in 1999, Tacoma Police Chief Donald Ramsdell said.
According to CNN affiliate KIRO, dozens of police officers lined up outside the hospital to pay their respects. They formed a procession to take the officer’s body to the medical examiner’s office.
One day, two officers shot
On the opposite side of the country in North Carolina, the Raleigh Police Department is conducting an investigation on the events that led to an officer being shot.
The officer was responding to a residential break-in, authorities said in a statement.
Witnesses told CNN affiliate WRAL that they heard gunshots and then saw a police officer on the ground.
Authorities have not released any detailed information about the incident. The officer is being treated for non-life threatening injures. The suspected shooter is being treated at the same hospital and is in critical but stable condition.
