A San Bernardino County sheriff's detective was shot during an exchange of gunfire and left in stable condition, while one suspect was killed, officials said at a news conference carried by LiveNOW from FOX. The top law enforcement officials from two Southern California counties appeared together to give an early account of the incident, stressing that it was still unfolding. They framed the shooting as a serious but survivable episode for the wounded detective, even as key details were still being pieced together.
The account of how the response began was laid out by Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna. According to Luna, his department received a call for assistance from its partners at the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department just after 3 p.m., and was advised that a deputy-involved shooting, an exchange of gunfire, had occurred. Responders arrived and immediately rendered aid to both the deputy and the suspect involved, before arranging for the wounded officer to be flown to the hospital.
Air support proved central to getting the injured detective to care quickly. According to Sheriff Luna, his department summoned Air 5, the LA County Sheriff's rescue helicopter, which has paramedics aboard, and used it to transport the San Bernardino County detective to Antelope Valley Medical Center. Sheriff Dicus said the crew stabilized the detective during that flight, and that moving him by air had been critical to saving a life and getting him the best possible medical care.
The specifics of the wounded officer were provided by San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus. According to Dicus, the injured officer holds the rank of detective, is a veteran of the Sheriff's Department who has served since 2014, and is in his 30s. He said the detective was shot just below the lower rib cage and was in stable condition, receiving what he described as top-notch care at Antelope Valley Medical Center.
Officials also confirmed that the exchange of gunfire had left one person dead. Sheriff Dicus said that, as of the news conference, there was one deceased suspect in the case. He said the detective had not been alone at the scene but was working alongside other detectives on a criminal investigation, and that the department was not disclosing how many people were with him while the scene was still being processed.
As the inquiry got underway, the sheriffs sought to reassure the public. Dicus said the department did not believe there were any outstanding suspects who would be a danger to the community or whom the public would need to help locate, and that a number of people had been detained in the case. Sheriff Luna added that the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department was taking the lead on the deputy-involved shooting investigation, which he called an extremely active investigation.
Officials described where the shooting happened and what would come next. According to the sheriffs, the incident took place in an extremely remote, rural area in the Lancaster-Palmdale area, and detectives expected to be processing and holding the scene through the night and into the morning. They said the LA County District Attorney's Office and the LA County Medical Examiner's Office would be responding to the scene, and that more information would be released as it became available.