CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Four law enforcement officers were killed and four others were injured Monday in a shooting at a Charlotte, North Carolina, home where authorities first arrived to execute a warrant.
The suspect who fired at the officers was shot dead on the lawn of the home, and two other people inside the home were later taken in for questioning. Police say there may have been more than one shooter, but it is not yet clear. In the aftermath, condolences poured in from small communities to the White House for the officers involved in one of the deadliest attacks on law enforcement in recent memory.
Here’s what we know:
Shooting incident in Charlotte, North Carolina
On Monday around 1:30 p.m., officers from the U.S. Marshals Task Force arrived at a home in suburban Charlotte to find multiple active warrants for 39-year-old Terry Clark Hughes Jr., who was wanted on firearms charges. was executed. She was convicted of being a felon and two counts of being a fugitive, according to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department.
Police said Hughes was armed with a “high-powered rifle” and opened fire on riot police officers as they approached, striking several people. As the officers called for backup and additional law enforcement arrived on the scene, “gunfire continued, striking more officers,” the department said. Authorities ultimately shot and killed Hughes, who was pronounced dead on his front lawn. The department said in a statement Tuesday that at least 12 Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers fired shots during the incident, all of whom are on paid administrative leave.
Police then began negotiations with other people in the house, and authorities eventually surrounded the house with armored vehicles. A semi-automatic AR-15 rifle, a .40 caliber handgun, additional magazines and ammunition for the weapon were found at the scene.
According to a police statement, the two women were taken in for questioning after they left the house. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings previously said a 17-year-old boy and a woman were being questioned. Investigators are not looking for other suspects or other people involved in the case, the police department said.
8 police officers shot, 4 killed
Eight police officers (four from the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force and four from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department) were shot and killed in the incident. Three of the slain police officers were members of the task force and the other was a member of the police station.
Two of the slain task force members, Sam Poloche and Alden Elliott, had been with the state Department of Adult Corrections for 14 years, the department said in a statement. According to the state Department of Corrections, Poloche is survived by his wife and two children. Elliot was married and had one child. Both were confirmed dead at the hospital.
“They loved their jobs and were passionate about their role in protecting our communities,” the statement said. “These officers died as heroes and committed themselves to the ultimate in service to our nation.” “I made a sacrifice,” he added.
Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas M. Weeks Jr., 48, of Mooresville, North Carolina, was killed in the shooting, the department said in a statement. Weeks, her husband and father of four children, was a 13-year veteran of the sheriff’s service.
After several hours at the hospital, Joshua Eyer, a six-year veteran of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, succumbed to his injuries. Iyer was married and had a three-year-old son.
“He fought for several hours and succumbed to his injuries this evening surrounded by his wife and family,” Jennings wrote on X. “I am deeply grateful for his courage, service, and ultimate sacrifice. He will never be forgotten, and we” are forever indebted. ”
Three CMPD officers were treated for injuries including gunshot wounds and a broken leg and released from the hospital, while a fourth underwent surgery to treat a gunshot wound and remains hospitalized in stable condition, the department said. It is said that they are doing so.
Monument to fallen officers grows
Flowers were placed outside the federal courthouse and CMPD headquarters in Charlotte in memory of the slain law enforcement officers, according to photos from the scene. The Rev. Raymond Johnson, associate pastor of Mount Pisgah Baptist Church in Marion, South Carolina, was moved by his faith to drive to Charlotte and sit in the front yard of a partially destroyed home. As an Amazon delivery truck whizzed past parked media vehicles, Mr. Johnson wrote “Pray for peace” and “Pray for all” on both sides of the narrow pavement. He waved a painted placard and said he was there on behalf of the congregation’s families who live in the area. “Jesus, I have to go on foot patrol,” he said after placing flowers on the lawn.
Neighbors recall gunfire, massive police response
Sein Chown, 54, had just left his home just after 1 p.m. That’s when members of the U.S. Marshals task force ran into his yard and hid behind a powder blue Honda sedan.
As gunshots rang out in the yard of a two-story house next door, Chown began livestreaming from his iPhone to Facebook.
Chown said he saw one officer, then another, shot from behind the brick house and heard frantic cries for help. He said two women ran out of the home, another man fled, and authorities contacted two officers who crashed their armored vehicle into a backyard and collapsed.
“They’re doing what they have to do to get the officer who was shot,” he said, looking at the twisted fence and deep ruts left next to the vehicle. Officers then used it to tear down the front of the house to launch the drone “I’ve seen a lot of movies and I knew what was going to happen.”
Records show the suspect had a long criminal history.
According to state records, Hughes was convicted and served time for multiple felonies, including trespassing, eluding police on a high-speed chase and possession of a firearm.
In 2010, he was convicted of felony trespassing in connection with an incident the previous year and sentenced to six months in prison, according to the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections.
In June 2012, he was arrested on suspicion of speeding to evade arrest. At the time, he was the subject of several warrants. To avoid his arrest, the suspect turned him around near the checkpoint and fled at high speed, beginning a chase at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour, WCNC reported.
According to the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections, Hughes was convicted of felon escape and possession of a firearm in October 2012 and was released in September 2013.
He was arrested in May 2021 on multiple charges, including possession of marijuana paraphernalia and evading arrest in a motor vehicle, according to the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office. Records show he was released the same day.
Biden: “These are heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice.”
President Joe Biden issued a statement Monday calling the officers “heroes” and saying he and First Lady Jill Biden will pray for their families and the officers as they recover. The president also spoke with Charlotte Mayor Vi Lyles to express his condolences and support for the community.
“These are heroes who went into dangerous situations and made the ultimate sacrifice to protect us,” the president said in a statement. “We mourn for them and their loved ones, and we pray for the recovery of these brave injured officers.”
Biden added that more steps must be taken to protect law enforcement, saying, “That means funding law enforcement so they can do their jobs and keep us safe.” “And that means taking additional action to combat the scourge of gun violence.”
Contributed by: Jonathan Limehouse, Thao Nguyen, Michael Loria, USA TODAY
