Three Chicago Police Officers Shot On West Side
Updated 03/15/16 - 1:02 p.m.
(CBS) -- Three Chicago police officers where shot and the suspected gunman was killed in a shootout late Monday night, after a drug investigation in the Homan Square neighborhood.
Police said the man who shot the officers was a convicted felon who had past arrests for gun and drug charges, and resisting arrest. Detectives were questioning a woman who was taken into custody after the shooting.
The incident occurred shortly before 10 p.m. in the 3700 block of West Polk Street, as Harrison District tactical officers were investigating drug activity. Officers saw a man and woman walking through the courtyard at that location, and went up to question them, police said.
When officers identified themselves, the man took ran away, police said. As officers gave chase, the man ran through a darkened courtyard, and turned and fired at police, hitting three officers.
"At least one officer was able to return fire, and fatally wounded the subject," Interim Police Supt. John Escalante said.
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Police said the officers were taken to John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County, where a steady stream of colleagues and officials stopped by overnight to check on them.
"Three officers were struck by gunfire. All three officers were transported here by Chicago Fire Department ambulance. None of the officers have life-threatening injuries," Escalante said. "Again, the subject was DOA [dead on arrival] at the scene. A weapon was recovered from him."
The officers' injuries were not considered to be life-threatening. Two of the officers were released from the hospital Tuesday morning. One officer was hit in the foot. Another was struck in his protective vest. The third was struck in the torso, and was recovering after surgery.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel also stopped by the emergency room and spoke with the officers and their families.
"It is a reminder to all of us of the work that they do, their dedication to our safety, and the willingness to put their own lives in the line of danger to protect all of us," Emanuel said at an unrelated event later Tuesday.
Police have identified the gunman as 29-year-old Lamar Harris, a purported gang member. Police said he is a convicted felon with a history of 43 arrests. According to the Chicago Police Department, Harris was convicted seven times, including five felony convictions, most recently in January 2012 for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, and resisting arrest.
The woman who was with Harris was not shot, but was taken into custody and was being questioned by police Tuesday morning.
All three officers involved in the shooting will be placed on administrative duty for at least the next 30 days while the Independent Police Review Authority investigates the incident.
