LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) — One person was injured, and another died after being shot by police in Lafayette in two separate incidents.
The first shooting happened Sunday morning, just after 1 a.m., on N. St. Antoine St. near Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. One person was injured but is in stable condition at a local hospital. No officers were injured.
The second was Sunday night, shortly after 11 p.m., in the 1600 block of Pinhook Rd. One person was fatally wounded. No officers were injured. It was confirmed that an officer with the Lafayette Police Department was involved in this shooting as well.
Louisiana State Police were requested to investigate both shootings.
It was 1 A.M. Sunday when Mary Alfred saw a sea of blue lights and rushed toward a crime scene. She had never done it before, but this time she was worried.
“My grandson and them being there, that is the only reason why I got out,” Alfred said.
Her grandson was at a concert down the street having fun. While the band did draw crowds, one resident argues it also attracted unwanted trouble. She said, “Every time there’s a function here, we always have chaos.”
Lafayette Police Public Information Officer Sgt. Robin Green said her department initially responded to a criminal mischief call 50 minutes past midnight of people refusing to leave on the 1500 block of N St. Antoine.
“While doing so, officers had to go and respond to a shooting in progress,” Green said.
Local police found one person shot who was taken to the hospital. What happened next is under investigation by State Police.
State Police Troop I Trooper First Class Thomas Gossen told News 10 an officer with the Lafayette Police Department fired his weapon sending one person to the hospital.
Phillip Murray is a senior citizen who lives near St. Antoine St. He said, “Well, if you pull a gun on me, I have to pull a gun on you. They’re protecting themselves. I respect their job and what they’re doing if they are to keep us safe, senior citizens.”
A neighbor of Murray’s who did not want to be identified said, “I really want officers to really detain people if possible instead of pulling their weapons out, and I know that’s hard to do. When they tell you to stop, stop, but when that people doesn’t do that, they have to protect themselves as well as other people.”
A second shooting involving officers happened late Sunday night on the 1600 block of Pinhook Road near the Vermilion River Bridge.
According to Trooper Thomas Gossen the initial investigation revealed the officer located a stolen Dodge passenger car and called for a back-up officer before initiating a traffic stop. Upon activation of the emergency lights, the suspect drove into a parking lot and fled on foot.
The initial officer and the back-up K-9 officer pursued the suspect on foot. During the foot pursuit, the suspect jumped from a structure and fell to the ground. One of the pursuing officers then discharged his Taser. As the Taser was being discharged, the K-9 accidently received an electrical charge from the Taser wires and disengaged. The suspect then reached for a visible gun after being instructed not to do so. One officer shot the suspect who was fatally wounded.
No officers were injured. The Lafayette Parish Metro Crime Scene Unit processed the scene for evidence. Further information will be released in the investigation when it becomes available.
The involved Lafayette Police officers are on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation which is standard procedure within the department.
