Deputy out of hospital after gunbattle; suspect critical
UPDATE
Indiana State Police investigators on Friday interviewed the officers involved in a Tuesday night shooting in DeKalb County that left the suspect in critical condition.
The officers were identified as DeKalb County Sheriff Deputy Todd McCormick, 53, a nine-year employee of the county Sheriff’s Department, and Garrett Police Officer Alicia Castro, 25, a four-year member of the city’s department.
McCormick suffered gunshot wounds to both hands and was being treated for those injuries.
Castro was not injured in the incident.
Police provided no update Friday on the condition of hospitalized suspect, who police have not yet named.
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GARRETT, Ind. (WANE) — A suspect shot Tuesday night during a gunbattle with a northern Indiana sheriff’s deputy remained in a hospital in critical condition Wednesday, state police said.
Sgt. Ted Bohner of Indiana State Police said a DeKalb County deputy initiated a traffic stop on a vehicle for an equipment violation around 8:20 p.m. The vehicle and officer stopped in the 400 block of South Hamsher Street near West Edgerton Street.
Bohner said the DeKalb deputy also was shot. The deputy was hospitalized overnight and released Wednesday afternoon.
During the stop, Bohner said, the deputy and the suspect fired shots. Bohner did not have immediate information on whether or not a Garrett police officer who assisted at the traffic stop had also fired shots. The Garrett officer was not injured.
It’s unclear how many total shots were fired.
The names of the deputy, the Garrett officer and the suspect have not been released.
State police was conducting the investigation at the request of the county’s Sheriff’s Department and prosecutor and the Garrett Police Department, a standard procedure for some departments when an officer-involved shooting occurs.
“There’s a lot of moving parts to the investigation,” Bohner said in an interview with WANE-TV, a sister station of WISH-TV. “It’s going to take a lot of time to determine exactly what happened and who did what.”
Crime scene technicians combed through the vehicles and worked in the street during the night to collect possible evidence. Multiple brown paper bags and numbered evidence placards were in the street, but it’s unclear what was being placed into them.
Most of the police investigation centered on the suspect’s vehicle and various items in the road. Bohner said he wasn’t sure if any houses or other vehicles were struck by gunfire.
The deputy and the Garrett city officer were both placed on administrative leave, often done after officer-involved shootings.
Part of the investigation will include speaking with neighbors and anyone nearby who may have heard or seen something, Bohner said.