SALT LAKE CITY — A Washington County sheriff’s deputy has been wounded in a shootout with a suspect.
Lt. Justin Hoyal said the shooting started about 9:30 p.m. Saturday at the police station in South Jordan, about 12 miles south of Salt Lake City.
“Deputy Hixon was the first deputy to arrive and was hit once in the leg,” Hoyal said. “We have several other deputy’s assisting who witnessed the shooting.”
Hoyal said the suspect is in serious condition and under arrest at the hospital.
“The officer in critical condition is a member of our reserve unit,” Hoyal said. “He is being treated at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City.”
Hoyal said a medical examiner will determine how the suspect was wounded.
The deputy who was shot is in his 20s and is in his second year with the Utah County Sheriff’s Office.
The person who was shot is in his 30s and has been with the department for one year.
“I think it’s scary,” said Nichole Zanini, 39, of West Jordan. “Why would somebody target an officer who’s just doing his job? It seems like all the bad things happening around the country these days, and now this. Why would anybody want to hurt that officer?”
Authorities earlier said that the shooter was believed to be either a man or woman.
“They’re two separate individuals, you know, but we’ll have to determine whether or not we have both together,” Hoyal said.
A SWAT team had entered the suspect’s house around midnight. It was not clear whether anyone was in the house at the time.
The home is in the district of Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who is running for a seventh term as Utah’s 6th Congressional District. Chaffetz is expected to win the November election.
Chaffetz’s father, Danny Chaffetz, told KSL TV that he was called to the house and found a man who was a neighbor who told him he shot a policeman. Danny Chaffetz said he arrived to find another neighbor in shock.
“People were pouring in. It was crazy,” he said.
The Salt Lake Tribune has reported that the exchange of gunfire is the first between police and a member of the public in about 15 years.
Taylorsville police spokesman officer Jason Nielsen said in an email that an officer was shot in the shoulder while responding to a 911 call. The person who called in the report of shots fired did not know which direction to call from, according to KSL-TV.
“It’s just sad,” Larry Marshall, 36, told the Tribune. “We have a lot of good cops out here to keep us safe. It’s scary that something like this could happen.”
The hospital where the shooting occurred said an officer was being treated for injuries that are not considered life-threatening.
White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said President Donald Trump has been briefed on the shooting.
“All of the president’s thoughts and prayers are with the officer and the sheriff’s department,” Sanders said.
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