Nov. 12--Southfield Police Chief Eric Hawkins said it's unclear why a 64-year-old Southfield man entered the police station Sunday and shot an officer before being killed.
Hawkins said his officers followed protocol when the man tried to shoot at an officer behind protective glass in the station lobby, then fired on responding officers, shooting one in the shoulder.
That wounded officer, a 50-year-old sergeant with 25 years as a Southfield police officer, and the suspect were taken to Providence Hospital in Southfield. The officer is expected to fully recover.
The shooter was shot multiple times and died at the hospital, Hawkins said Sunday night.
"We always try to resolve these incidents nonviolently if we can," said Hawkins. "However, the use of force was unavoidable in this circumstance."
Hawkins said the incident occurred about 2:20 p.m., when the man, believed to be driving a white Dodge Caliber, entered the station from the south entrance. He approached the information desk, which is behind glass, and did not answer when an officer offered assistance.
Hawkins said police believe the man pulled the trigger on a handgun, but the gun did not fire.
Other officers responded, including the sergeant. They demanded the man drop his gun, but instead, Hawkins said, the man fired on the officers, shooting the sergeant in the shoulder.
The man was shot several times. Both he and the sergeant were treated at the police station before being transported to the hospital, said Hawkins.
Police spokesman Lt. Nick Loussia said the department could not release the dead man's name until his family has been notified.
Police would not release the sergeant's name.
"There is no glory in having to take down a criminal," said Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence, who spoke with the officer at the hospital. "We are sad as a family that one of our officers was attacked."
Hawkins said the incident would spur the department to re-evaluate security measures. There are public entrances on both sides of the lobby at the main police station at the city's civic center.
Copyright 2012 - Detroit Free Press
