Tragic and very sad news:
Reporting from Los Angeles and Oakland — In a blow to the Oakland Police Department, four officers were shot to death during two incidents this afternoon that began with a routine traffic stop, Oakland authorities said.
City Atty. John Russo said tonight that he had been told all four were dead. The officers’ names have not been released. The suspect was killed in the gunfire.
“It’s senseless,” Russo said. “We didn’t lose four officers in the earthquakes or the worst of the fires. You want to find a meaning in it. It underscores what a difficult job it is to be a police officer.”
Late Saturday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger saluted police bravery and sacrifice and ordered flags flown at half mast in the capital.
“This is a tragic day for law enforcement officers everywhere. All four officers dedicated their lives to public safety and selflessly worked to protect the people of Oakland,” Schwarzenegger said in a statement. “Maria and I join the Bay Area in remembering their service and honoring their sacrifice. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of those lost, the Oakland Police Department and law enforcement officers throughout California during this difficult time.”
Two motorcycle officers were shot during the traffic stop at 1:16.p.m. on MacArthur Boulevard in east Oakland. A man stepped out of the car and fired at the officers before fleeing into the neighborhood, authorities said.
After the first shooting, police launched a “very extensive manhunt” for the suspect, Thomason said. Police then received an anonymous tip that a possible suspect was barricaded inside a nearby apartment building.
About 3:20 p.m., officers tracked the suspect down at a building along 74th Avenue. SWAT officers entered the building. Russo said the suspect fired at officers through a wall with a high-powered rifle, hitting two of them.
SWAT officers “returned fire in defense of their lives,” said acting Police Chief Howard Jordan.
The only good news to come out of this is the suspect is dead.
About 100 officers were gathered outside the entrance to the hospital’s emergency room, waiting desperately for information about their wounded friends and colleagues. Some of them were wearing SWAT gear, while others were wearing baseball jerseys after having raced from a game.
UPDATE
Names released:
Mark Dunngan
John Hege
Ervin Romans
Dan Sakai
The shooter is 27 year old parolee Lovelle Mixon, on parole for ADW, and it looks like Hege is on life support…
UPDATE II
Found this on a Lovelle Mixon. No picture yet.
UPDATE III
From the Mercury News:
“I went over to one officer and saw he was bleeding from his helmet pretty bad,” he said. “The other officer was laying motionless.”
He said the officer lying near a car had two gun shot bullets near in his face. One bullet was lodged in his jaw and the other in his neck.
The man proceeded to give the officer CPR until police arrived on the scene, he said.
UPDATE IV
Local news report:
And typical of scum, here is a youtube video of someone writing:
4 punk ass police got shot and i hope there DEAD
UPDATE V
That scum I wrote about above who posted the youtube video is apparently is a rapper:
Askari X is a rather famous rapper from the Oakland, CA. Bay Area. He made a big bang with his controversial song released while locked up in prison, “Ward of the State.” He leans toward hard, “violent if necessary” black-power messages with Islamic tendencies. He has worked with artists such as Dead Prez and Tajai from the Hieroglyphics.
UPDATE VI
Overnight the pictures of the scumbag were released:
And the officers:
As well as some more detailed information:
A fifth officer, a member of the SWAT team that killed the suspect police held responsible for the shootings, was treated for minor injuries and released.
The first incident happened about 1:15 p.m. when two traffic officers were gunned down after what police described as a “routine” stop of a 1995 Buick in the 7400 block of MacArthur Boulevard in East Oakland, not far from the Eastmont Town Center.
About two hours later, after some 200 officers from Oakland Police, Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, BART Police and the California Highway Patrol combed the area for the suspect, three SWAT officers were shot when their team found him hidden in an apartment on 74th Avenue near Hillside Street, police officials said.
~~~First reports of the incident came from a 911 call at 1:16 p.m., reporting that two officers had been shot, possibly with an assault-type rifle. The suspect fled from the scene on foot, sparking a door-to-door manhunt in East Oakland that involved officers from at least five law enforcement agencies.
An anonymous tipster told police that the suspect was in an apartment building just blocks from the original shooting. The SWAT team was called to the site and took control of the area around the building. After repeated attempts to communicate with the suspect, SWAT officers entered the building around 3:30 p.m.
According to law enforcement sources, the SWAT team officers entered an apartment and approached a closet. Suddenly the gunman, hiding in the closet, opened fire through the door, killing two officers and wounding a third. Officers fired back, killing the gunman.
~~~Saturday’s shooting appears to be one of the state’s most horrific police killings.
The most notorious such slaying is referred to as the “Newhall incident,” a Los Angeles County shootout in 1970 that left four California Highway Patrol officers dead and changed the way state law enforcement officers approach high-risk stops.
Because of that Newhall incident we are all trained now to treat high risk stops in a controlled manner, forcing the occupants out of the car and walking back to us while we are behind cover. Unfortunately this appears to have been a run of the mill traffic stop by two motors who didn’t have a chance. Working in South Central Los Angeles I never, ever, approach a car during a traffic stop without seeing the hands of all occupants but from the sounds of it the Oakland officers never got a chance to even approach the car, the suspect bailed and began firing.
As for that youtube video, it’s still up. Youtube got a lot of complaints but decided in all their wisdom that it was just adult content so now you have to put in your age to view it. I’ve seen youtube ban videos that were much less offensive, but this one is a-ok. Nice.
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