Fortunato said he is not sure why Michel stopped the suspect.
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Nichel, assigned to the street crimes unit, had been with the sheriff’s office since 2007.
Further details about the pedestrian stop, the suspect and the struggle between the man and officer were not immediately available.
Michel was part of JPSO’s Street Crimes Unit.
Michel was shot three times “straight in the back”, said Dr. Gerry Cvitanovich, the parish coroner.
The deputy, identified as David F. Nichel Jr., was pronounced dead at a hospital a short time after the shooting.
A suspect is in custody, but has not yet been identified publicly, WDSU-TV reports.
Authorities in Louisiana say a deputy has been shot and killed after stopping a pedestrian on the street in a New Orleans suburb.
Chief Deputy Craig Taffaro tells nola.com that Michel was “doing what he loved to do”. Wednesday June 22, 2016, in New Orleans.
The sheriff said at least five witnesses have confirmed the encounter and exchange the suspect had with Deputy Michel.
Normand said when Michel began to search him, Neveaux spun around and went chest-to-chest with the deputy, pulled a gun from his waistband, reached around Michel’s shoulder and fired into the deputy’s upper back.
Michel was rushed to University Hospital. His identity has not been released.
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It was the year’s second shooting of a Jefferson Parish officer.
