A Buffalo Police officer is hospitalized with gunshot wounds and was scheduled to undergo surgery Wednesday morning following a violent domestic call Tuesday afternoon, Police Commissioner Erika Shields said later in the evening.
The officer, whose name was not released but was said by Shields to be in his ninth year with the department, was one of two men shot Tuesday afternoon at a home at 256 Sherman Street between Paderewski Drive and Broadway.
"The officers responded to the location, and upon arrival, they found the suspect in the kitchen area. The suspect was acting in a very agitated manner," Shields explained. "They gave him repeated verbal commands to come out of the house, because he had his back flush against the wall, and so there really wasn't any room to negotiate."
Shields added that the individual was unwilling to come out of the kitchen area, so officers went in to bring him into custody. A struggle ensued, and according to the commissioner as officers attempted to place the man in handcuffs, he reached for a concealed gun.
"Gunshots rang out, an officer was shot multiple times, and fellow officers returned fire," she continued. "The officers on scene did an excellent job rendering aid. I cannot say enough about their training, how it kicked in, and how they responded."
The suspect, whose name was also not released as of Tuesday evening, was in surgery at the time of the commissioner's briefing.
The officer, according to Shields, "was hit in the legs and the shoulder and arm area."
The commissioner confirmed the news during a press conference related to Saturday's incident, when an officer was stabbed and a suspect shot.
Earlier in the afternoon, Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan confirmed the officer had been shot.
"This is a stark reminder of the dangers that the brave men and women of the Buffalo Police Department face each and every day, when they leave their homes to go to work every day," said the mayor. "Our prayers are with that police officer and that officer's family."
Officers were said to be continuing their investigation at the house into the evening.
