Two court bailiffs were killed and a deputy sheriff shot Monday inside a southwestern MI courthouse when an inmate broke loose and got his hands on an officer’s gun, officials said.
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The bailiffs killed have been identified as Joe Zangaro and Ron Kienzle.
He shot a sheriff’s deputy, killed the bailiffs and then shot a civilian in the arm in a public area, the sheriff said.
The injuries suffered by the deputy and the civilian weren’t considered serious. Bailey said he did not know anything about the shooter, why he was in the courthouse or how he got a gun.
Bailey said the incident began after a disturbance shortly before 2:30 p.m. Zangaro was a retired Michigan State Police Trooper and head of the court house security.
“I lost some friends today”, Sheriff Bailey, who was visibly shaken, said during the briefing.
In 2005, Georgia rape defendant Brian Nichols seized an officer’s gun and killed a judge, a court reporter and a sheriff’s deputy inside the Fulton County Courthouse in Atlanta. He also fatally shot the two bailiffs, wounded a civilian and held citizens hostage for a short time before being killed by bailiffs, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Video footage posted online that appeared to be from outside the courthouse in southwestern MI showed a line of police vehicles with their lights flashing parked outside the building.
Bailey did not release information on the inmate, including what charges he faced.
A sheriff says a civilian injured during a courthouse shooting in western MI was the fourth victim to be shot during the incident.
Born and raised in northern rural Wisconsin, she is an avid outdoors woman, target and skeet shooter, Second Amendment supporter and defender, concealed carry advocate, NRA member and frequent guest on Cam&Co.
Media reports, including from our sister station WSJV that three people were shot, one of whom was a police officer according to CNN.
Jessica Gordon tells WOOD-TV that her ex-husband, Larry Darnell Gordon, was “an unbelievable man that got mixed up with the wrong people”.
People in the courthouse took shelter before other officers shot and killed the inmate, Mr Bailey said. “This is a tragic event to have happened and we need to rally together to support one another”. “No further victims are involved”, Bailey said.
St. Joseph is located on the southwest corner of the state along the Lake Michigan shoreline, roughly 95 miles from Chicago.
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Both men were retired from law enforcement.
