A 911 call early Friday morning that a woman had been shot at a home in southwest Phoenix turned into a barricade standoff where nine officers were injured in a hail of gunfire. Two people inside the house died.
“I cannot recall an incident in city history where so many officers were injured,” said Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego at a Friday afternoon news conference.
Phoenix police said five officers were shot and four others injured by shrapnel at a home near 51st Avenue and Broadway Road. The man believed to be the shooter was later found dead inside the home. A woman inside the home — believed to be his ex-girlfriend — was critically injured and later died, police said.
Here’s what is known so far:
Suspect identified late Friday
Police identified the suspect as 36-year-old Morris Jones, who was pronounced dead at the scene of an apparent gunshot wound. The woman’s identity had not been released as of Friday, pending notification of kin.
A motive wasn’t entirely clear.
“As we speak, investigators are working to uncover what led to this terrifying act, some of which was caught on tape and on camera by the media. I saw that video and it still gives me chills,” Phoenix police Chief Jeri Williams said.
Phoenix police ambush: What happened first
Phoenix police arrived at the home about 2:15 a.m. Friday after a 911 call that a woman had been shot.
Police later determined there were four people inside the home at the time: Two men, a woman and a baby girl.
The suspect invited the first officer inside and then “ambushed” him as he approached the door, shooting him several times, the police chief said. The officer was able to get to safety as backup arrived.
Police called out to the occupants of the home. Video taken at the scene shows a man slowly emerging with one hand in the air, the other clutching a pink bag and holding a baby.
“He’s got a baby,” someone says in the video.
The man lays the baby and the bag on the ground and obeys commands from the police to walk backward while keeping his hands in the air.
Police said the man is a family member of someone who lives in the home and cooperated with investigators.
As officers moved forward to rescue the baby, the suspect opened fire and barricaded himself inside the home. Four officers were shot, and four others were injured by shrapnel. Two officers at the scene returned fire.
The suspect was believed to be the woman’s ex-boyfriend, and the baby was believed to be their child. Officials said the baby was OK.
What happened to the officers?
Officials said the first officer to approach the door and was shot had the most serious injuries. He is expected to survive.
The four other officers who were shot had non-life-threatening injuries, and the four who were injured by shrapnel had minor injuries.
Four officers remained in the hospital as of Friday afternoon, receiving treatment.
“Nine officers shot or injured. That is an incredibly heavy weight for all of us,” said Gallego, the Phoenix mayor at a Friday afternoon news conference. She said she is incredibly proud of the officers who chose to run into harm’s way toward the baby.
“A baby is safe today because of our Phoenix police officers,” she said.
She said she went to the hospital earlier in the day and talked to an officer who was about to go into surgery.
“That officer only wanted to hear about the rest of the squad and how they were doing. That is the type of incredibly selfless individual who serves the city of Phoenix,” she said.
Where is the baby?
“It’s a very young female child, an infant, who is in DCS (Arizona Department of Child Safety) the last time I was updated,” Phoenix police Sgt. Andy Williams said.
Where does the investigation stand?
Andy Williams said the complexity and scale of the scene cannot be overstated. He said detectives will likely be working through Saturday to process evidence at the scene.
“It’s an ongoing investigation. It’s incredibly complex. I don’t have most of these answers yet,” he said at a Friday afternoon news conference.
He said information is subject to change, but that police are investigating two shootings — one of which involved officers and the other involving the woman inside the home.
Who owns the home?
The owner of the Warner Street home said Friday he was shocked and saddened by the shooting.
Frank DeAguilar of Hemet, Calif., said he was still trying to comprehend the violence and didn’t realize two people had died inside the home.
“It is so surreal,” he said. “The house can be fixed. But somebody lost their lives. It is horrible.”
DeAguilar said he owns two homes in the area and both are rented through a management company. He did not know if Jones was a tenant or a relative of one.
“I didn’t know who those people were,” he said. “It is a nice place, in a nice neighborhood. … This is a horrible thing that took place.”
“My heart is heavy right now,” he said.
How does this incident compare to others?
The total of nine injuries to Phoenix police officers could possibly be the most to occur in a single incident at the department, the police chief said.
Two months ago, Phoenix police Officer Tyler Moldovan was shot as many as eight times during an investigation. He has since been released from the hospital but was taken to another medical facility for rehabilitation.
“This is just one more example of the dangers our officers face every day keeping us and our community safe,” Chief Williams said during a 6 a.m. news conference outside Banner University Medical Center on Friday.
“If I seem upset, I am,” she continued. “This is senseless, it doesn’t need to happen and it continues to happen over and over again.”
On Friday afternoon, the chief tweeted that she was proud of the courageous men and women of the Phoenix Police Department.
“While they heal from their wounds, their brothers and sisters in blue will be back out there answering when you call,” she tweeted.
Reach the reporter at anne.ryman@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8072. Follow her on Twitter @anneryman.
Reach the reporter at chelsea.curtis@arizonarepublic.com or follow her on Twitter @curtis_chels.
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