UPDATE 1 – 2 San Antonio police officers critically injured in shooting

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By BNO NEWS

Two Texas police officers have been shot and critically injured after trying to approach two men on a street in San Antonio, local officials say. The gunman was shot and killed when one of the wounded officers returned fire.

The incident happened on late Thursday afternoon when two officers tried to stop two pedestrians on West Evergreen Street during a directed patrol. But as soon as the officers exited their vehicle, one of the men suddenly opened fire, shooting both officers.

“One officer was struck in the head area, the face. The other officer was struck in the upper torso,” San Antonio Police Chief William McManus said at a press briefing. He said one of the officers dragged his colleague to safety, after which he shot the suspect. The second man was taken into custody.

Both officers were rushed to Brooke Army Medical Center, where one was said to be in a grave condition and the other in critical condition. The suspect, who was taken to University Hospital, was initially listed as gravely injured and later succumbed to his injuries.

It was not immediately known why the suspect opened fire at the officers, who are both 9-year veterans of the department. “Nothing to indicate why the guy would have opened [fire] at the officers,” Chief McManus said. He provided no details about the suspect’s identity.

Directed patrols often target areas which experience high levels of violent crime. Officers on such patrols typically stop both pedestrian and vehicle traffic, either as a blanketing effort or by targeting suspicious activity.

As a result of the shooting, the nearby San Antonio College was briefly put on lockdown as the school warned students of an armed person on campus. The lockdown was lifted a short time later and McManus said there was never a threat beyond the police-involved shooting.

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