A Detroit police officer was shot and killed Wednesday following a confrontation with an armed man who had “some history.”
After police officers responded to an evening 9-11 call over shots fired indiscriminately on the city’s west side, an armed suspect opened fire on responding officers, striking one, according to NBC News. The suspect was killed in the exchange of fire.
Detroit police chief James White confirmed Thursday the identity of the slain officer as Loren Courts, a five-year veteran of the department and “beloved son, father, and husband.”
“Candidly, we were robbed. We were robbed of one of our heroes. The city was robbed of a great father, a great police officer, a great brother, a great son, and a great husband — and we should all be outraged,” White said of the officer’s loss.
Detroit’s skyline from Belle Isle in the Detroit River, with General Motors’ world headquarters in the foreground. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
The police chief withheld the suspect’s name during Thursday’s press conference, declining to provide full details on any criminal history, pending further investigation. White said the 19-year-old suspect has “some history” and stated there was “likely a submission of a warrant,” but could not confirm the status of the warrant request.
White fielded questions on whether the suspect should have been locked up. The police praised the work of both officers and prosecutors, and cited low bonds as a reason for “senseless shootings.”
“How many times have we stumbled onto someone who should have been incarcerated, who’s out on the street committing another act?” he said. (RELATED: Amid Crime Spike, Detroit Residents Reject Radical Police Reform And Want More Cops On The Street: Poll)
Not including Courts, 178 officers have been shot in 2022, 33 of whom were killed by gunfire, according to the National Fraternal Order of Police.