DOTHAN, Ala. – A police officer was wounded and a suspect is dead after a gunfight erupted during a traffic stop over a missing license plate on Monday afternoon in Alabama.
Dothan Police Chief Will Benny said an officer conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle that did not have a license plate at about 12:30 p.m. on April 19, the Dothan Eagle reported.
“The officer stopped the car, and had a brief conversation with the driver and the officer noticed that there was a gun in the vehicle,” Chief Benny told reporters at a press conference on Monday afternoon.
The police chief said the suspect left the scene before the officer released him, so the officer followed him and called for backup, the Dothan Eagle reported.
The suspect stopped at Third Avenue and Trim Street.
Chief Benny told reporters the suspect exited his vehicle armed with handgun, the Dothan Eagle reported.
The police chief said officers tried to use less-lethal measures to de-escalate the situation first.
“Officers attempted to use a Taser to incapacitate the suspect. The suspect began firing at an officer and struck him in the left leg,” Chief Benny said. “The officer and his backup fired at the suspect, ending the confrontation.”
The officer was transported to the hospital and taken into surgery, the Dothan Eagle reported.
The chief has not identified the wounded hero but said that his family was at the hospital supporting him.
The suspect was also transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead, the Dothan Eagle reported.:
Police also have not released the identity of the suspect.
Reporters asked Chief Benny if he was sure that his officers had done everything correctly during the incident.
“I feel confident in our actions and our response,” the police chief said, according to the Dothan Eagle.
The Alabama State Bureau of Investigation is heading up the investigation into the officer-involved shooting.
