2 San Diego police officers shot, 1 fatally, during stop
SAN DIEGO >> One San Diego police officer was killed and another was wounded in a shootout following a late-night stop to check out a person, authorities said Friday. A suspect was wounded and taken into custody shortly after the gunfight and police hours later surrounded a home as they searched for man described as a possible accomplice.
Officers broke windows, pounded on the roof and shouted for the man they thought was there to surrender but he wasn’t found there.
They then raced to another house about two blocks away, positioning an armored truck and robots outside. But he wasn’t there either and the manhunt was still on Friday afternoon.
Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman identified the dead officer as Jonathan DeGuzman, a 16-year veteran of the force who was married with two children. He suffered multiple gunshot wounds.
Officer Wade Irwin, 32, underwent surgery after being shot and was expected to survive, Zimmerman said. His wife was at the hospital during surgery.
Both officers were wearing bulletproof vests and body cameras, and quickly called for assistance from other officers, Zimmerman said.
Police initially said the shootout started following a traffic stop, but Zimmerman later clarified that detectives were trying to determine whether it was a traffic stop or an attempt by the officers to check out a pedestrian.
“It happened extremely quickly, very quickly,” she said. “From the information that was put out that a stop was being made to that the officers called for emergency cover to when the other officers arrived on scene, we’re talking very, very quickly, Seconds to a minute or so. Very quickly.”
The male suspect was captured in a nearby ravine and was being treated Friday at a hospital. Police did not identify him but Zimmerman said he was in critical condition with a gunshot wound.