Two St. Pete Cops Killed, Marshal Injured In Shooting
ST. PETERSBURG (CBS4) - On a day when South Florida memorialized two Miami-Dade police officers who died last week in a gunfight in Liberty City, a police involved shooting in St. Petersburg has left two police officers dead and a U.S. Marshal seriously wounded.
St. Petersburg police spokesman Michael Puetz said the shooting happened when his officers and the Marshals had gone to a home to arrest 39-year old Hydra Lacy Jr. on aggravated battery charges.
When they arrived at the house, they were told by a woman that Lacy was in the attic. The three were shot as they tried to get him out, said Puetz. Police have not confirmed if Lacy was the shooter. Lacy had a long record which included convictions for armed robbery and sexual battery.
A SWAT team surrounded the house and a nearby middle school had been placed on lockdown as a precaution. Police used a vehicle to punch a hole in the wall to get to one of the officers who later died.
Police Chief Chuck Harmon said more than 100 rounds were fired during the shootout.
"He was somebody we wanted to get off the streets, " Harmon said. "Who expects to walk into a house and get gunfire from the attic?"
Puetz said about a six hours after the shooting, officers stormed the home and found Lacy dead inside.
The shooting is eerily reminiscent to one four days ago in which Officers Roger Castillo and Amanda Haworth were killed by Johnny Simms when they went to his mother's home to arrest him. Simms was killed by another detective.
On Sunday, a man opened fire inside a Detroit police precinct, wounding four officers including a commander before he was shot and killed by police. Authorities said the gunman walked in just after 4 p.m. and fired indiscriminately. The officers' injuries were not considered life-threatening.
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