Detroit police officer shot, rushed to hospital; suspects flee

A Detroit police officer who was investigating reports of gunfire on the city’s east side was shot early Friday morning, by one of three suspects exiting an apartment building that housed a marijuana-grow operation, Chief James White said in a news briefing.

“We are encountering violence like we haven’t seen,” White said, praising his officers who are facing increasing threats. “Extreme violence. Impulsive decision-making. And they’re constantly under threat. But they show up and do this work.”

Two other officers returned fire, but the suspects got away.

The injured officer, who was not named, was taken to Ascension St. John Hospital.

White told reporters the incident unfolded sometime after midnight. Officers went to check out a report from ShotSpotter, an audio surveillance system that recognizes the sound of gunfire, at Morang Avenue and Whitehill Street.

When the police arrived, residents pointed them to the apartment building that was supposed to be vacant but had been occupied by “three people who shouldn’t have been inside.” As the officers drew closer, the building occupants exited. One fired at the officers.

The officer, the chief said, was struck in his left calf.

The other officers shot back, but the chief said, it was unknown whether the suspects were hit.

The armed suspect is described by police as a 5-foot-8 Black man with dreadlock hair. He headed west.

Police did not describe the condition of the injured officer, nor did they release additional suspect descriptions or detail whether the suspects ran or drove away in a vehicle, but said they are aggressively following clues to find them.