The cruiser that was struck by gunfire in Attleboro. (Shari Small/WBZ NewsRadio 1030)
ATTLEBORO (WBZ-AM) -- Attleboro Police shot and wounded a man who fired on them Monday morning.
Two rookie officers responded to a call around 6:45 a.m. from a church pastor, saying that an armed man had just left the church. Attleboro Police Chief Kyle Heagney said they found the suspect walking on Route 1A--and without warning, he began shooting. One officer had to dive out of his cruiser while it was still running. Bullets struck the headrests of both cruisers.
Officers returned fire and shot the suspect, a Rhode Island man, several times. Heagney said neither officer was hit by gunfire, but both were taken to the hospital as a precaution for stress-related issues.
"Had the officers, in my opinion, not taken evasive action so instinctively and quickly, they probably would have succumbed or been dead, definitely not with us today," Heagney said. "I just want to tell you how proud I am of these officers. Their instincts and training took over, and God forbid that they were still sitting in those cruisers. It's shocking when you see those rounds in the headrests, going through that windshield."
The suspect remains hospitalized, and is undergoing surgery. The extent of his injuries was not yet known.