Two Baton Rouge police officers were taken to a local hospital to be treated for gunshot wounds after a shootout on Saturday morning.
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The shooting happened just after 5:30 am when one of the officers responded to a disturbance call about damage to property.
Coppola said the suspect then got out of the auto with a long gun and began firing. According to WMBF News, the State Fire Marshal had to turn attendees away after the arena hit its maximum occupancy of 10,000 people.
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) – A Baton Rouge neighborhood was awakened before dawn Saturday by a hail of gunfire, with police saying two officers were wounded as they traded shots with a man they had been chasing.
Chambers says Smith, the son of her godmother, has been living with her since December. The suspect was smashing the vehicle’s windshield and puncturing tires when people who live at the address called authorities. When one officer arrived at the scene, Smith fled in a 2013 Dodge Avenger.
Hope Walker, who said she’s a close friend of Smith’s, said she was staying with someone down the street when she heard three gunshots early Saturday morning.
“Both of these officers were very fortunate to survive this encounter”, Moore said.
Police said the officers’ injuries did not appear to be life-threatening.
Moore’s office sent five district attorney investigators to the scene shortly after the shooting. BRPD said the man who shot at police is in critical condition at an area hospital.
The suspect was shot and his condition is unknown.
He said one officer was white and the other, black. The officers were hit.
No information was immediately available Saturday about the type of weapon Smith used, but a witness reported hearing multiple shots fired in rapid succession.
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Officials say the two officers will be placed on paid administrative leave per standard procedure.
