3 SWAT officers shot, injured in Philadelphia; police call level of gun violence 'ridiculous'

KEVIN SHALVEY and EMILY SHAPIRO
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3 SWAT officers shot, injured in Philadelphia; police call level of gun violence 'ridiculous'

Three members of a Philadelphia SWAT team were shot while serving a warrant Wednesday morning, according to police, who again pleaded for an end to the city's gun violence.

It appears all the injured officers will be OK, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said.

This shooting occurred just after 6 a.m. as SWAT officers tried to serve a warrant on a person who was wanted for an August homicide and was suspected of participating in multiple armed robberies, Philadelphia Police First Deputy Commissioner John Stanford said at a news conference.

PHOTO: Investigators work the scene where multiple people were shot including police officers in Philadelphia, Oct. 12, 2022. (Matt Rourke/AP)
PHOTO: Investigators work the scene where multiple people were shot including police officers in Philadelphia, Oct. 12, 2022. (Matt Rourke/AP)

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As officers approached the door, the 19-year-old suspect shot at them through the door and window, Stanford said.

The suspect tried to flee, and when the SWAT officers followed, the suspect fired at them, according to Stanford.

SWAT officers returned fire and the suspect was pronounced dead at 7:32 a.m., he said.

PHOTO: Investigators work the scene where multiple people were shot including police officers when a SWAT team attempted to serve a homicide warrant in Philadelphia, Oct. 12, 2022. (Matt Rourke/AP)
PHOTO: Investigators work the scene where multiple people were shot including police officers when a SWAT team attempted to serve a homicide warrant in Philadelphia, Oct. 12, 2022. (Matt Rourke/AP)

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Two of the injured officers are expected to be released from the hospital later on Wednesday, Stanford said. One officer was struck in the leg, one in the hip and the third was hit in the upper chest, Stanford said.

"It’s good to see them sitting up, talking, and their families around them," Kenney told reporters.

Stanford called the level of gun violence in Philadelphia "ridiculous," adding, "it’s enough."

"There’s not a day that goes by that we don’t either have a child that is shot, or multiple people shot, because there are too many people out here carrying guns and they don’t have consequences," he said. “Some people need to be in jail."

"This should not be happening -- this is not normal," he said. "Unfortunately we have come to believe that this is the normal course of events -- it's not ... it is troubling."

PHOTO: A street in North Philadelphia, where three SWAT team members were shot while serving a warrant on Oct. 12, 2022. (WPVI)
PHOTO: A street in North Philadelphia, where three SWAT team members were shot while serving a warrant on Oct. 12, 2022. (WPVI)

Stanford stressed that Wednesday's suspected gunman was just 19 years old.

"Something has been broken in this young man's life for a long time, and it just didn't start today," he said.

3 SWAT officers shot, injured in Philadelphia; police call level of gun violence 'ridiculous' originally appeared on abcnews.go.com