Two Phoenix officers were injured early Sunday morning after a suspect opened fire on them in their vehicle. One officer was hit by a bullet and is expected to "fully recover" from his wound, Chief Jerri Williams said during a press conference. The other was hit by flying glass.
A suspect is in custody.
AZ Family reports the incident began when two officers were trying to conduct a traffic stop in the area. The driver took off but was later found by officers who attempted to stop the car again. As they were driving along, someone standing on the side of the road opened fire and hit the patrol vehicle multiple times.
Police say the officer on the passenger side was hit in the wrist, while the officer driving was hurt from flying glass.
The driver the officers were originally trying to stop was later identified as 18-year-old Javon Beasley. Beasley tried to take off on foot, but was arrested by police a short time later. He was booked on felony flight. The shooting suspect is in the process of being booked for attempted homicide, according to police. His name has not been released.
Chief Williams says it appears that officers were “shot by someone hiding in the darkness literally trying to pick our officers off.”
Williams said seven Phoenix officers have been shot and 12 injured in the last three months.
"This cannot become our new normal."
At the end of the press conference, a reporter asked if there was a connection between a Saturday night "shots fired" incident at a Phoenix police precinct that may have involved a suspect in a similar vehicle as the one found at the scene of the Sunday morning shooting. He mentioned reports that officers were following that "similar" vehicle. Police would not comment on any possible connection, saying it was too early in the investigation to do so.
