Coppola told WBRZ’s Michael Vinsanau that one of the officers involved in the shooting was released from the hospital Sunday afternoon.
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Gina Chambers said Smith has been living at her Baton Rouge home since December.
During the vehicle chase, Smith stopped and exited the vehicle with a large caliber semi-automatic assault rifle and opened fire on the officers. Chambers said she did not notice any obvious signs of a mental breakdown before the Baton Rouge shooting.
“One more inch, and that officer’s dead”, Moore said of the first policeman. She also added that he has attempted to commit suicide in the past.
Residents awakened early Saturday (Feb. 13) by a shootout that left two officers and a suspect wounded said they heard dozens of shots fired during the confrontation.
Chambers said the suicide attempt was in Shreveport, where Smith had been admitted for treatment and was taking medication for some type of clinical depression. He is listed in stable condition. Chambers said she did not know that Smith had a gun. “I didn’t hear nothing but sirens, gunshots and tires squealing”.
Dozens of evidence markers were placed in the street, indicating the possible presence of shell casings and other evidence. She said she didn’t know where Smith had obtained the rifle police say he used. The suspect, later identified as Calvin Smith, emerged with a rifle and exchanged gunshots with two policemen, according to police.
Up to 50 shots were fired between the two officers and the suspect. A bullet grazed the head of one officer; the other officer was hit in the stomach but protected by his bulletproof vest.
“These guys are fortunate to be alive”, Moore said.
Details about Smith’s injuries and cause of death were not immediately available. The suspect, also wounded, was hospitalized in critical condition, The Advocate reported.
“Everything is still preliminary, and we’re still working the scene”, Dabadie said. The officers chased him until he bailed out of his vehicle, about two miles away.
They said when the officers arrived on the scene, a suspect fled and the pursuit ended when the suspect’s vehicle crashed in the 5600 block of Fairfields Avenue.
Baton Rouge Police Sgt. Don Coppola says the officers confronted the suspect after a 2-mile vehicle chase early Saturday. The officers were hit.
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This story has been corrected to show Smith is the son of Chambers’ godmother, not that Chambers is the daughter of Smith’s godmother.
