Two Florida Sheriff's deputies fatally shot

[Andy in NH]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090426/ap_on_re_us/us_deputies_shooting

CRESTVIEW, Fla. – Two north Florida sheriff's deputies were fatally shot at a shooting range by a suspect who was later killed by deputies after he fled across the county line, authorities said.

It happened around 1 p.m. Saturday when the two Okaloosa County deputies went to Shoal River Sporting Clays and Shooting Center in response to a call, said Michele Nicholson, a sheriff's spokeswoman.

Deputies Burt Lopez and Deputy Warren "Skip" York were pronounced dead after being airlifted to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, about 45 miles away, the sheriff's office said. Sheriff's officials identified their killer as Joshua Cartwright, 28, of Fort Walton Beach.

Authorities said the suspect shot both deputies and took off toward neighboring Walton County, where he was shot and killed by sheriff's deputies.

A witness, Mark Illich was near the DeFuniak Springs intersection where deputies killed Cartwright.

"It must have been like 30 or 40 shots," Illich told The Northwest Florida Daily News.

Illich said he saw one officer putting down spikes at the intersection and knew "something's about to happen."

Then, "(Cartwright's) truck, he started coming. And we saw him, and he seemed calm as a cucumber," Illich said.

Cartwright veered around the spike strip, and an officer opened fire at the back of his truck, Illich said.

The deputies had gone to the shooting range while following up on a domestic violence call from Cartwright's apartment in Fort Walton Beach, authorities said. Investigators from the Florida Department of Law enforcement and the sheriff's office did not immediately release other details about the call.

A man who answered the telephone at the shooting center near Crestview said he had no comment on the shooting.

Another Okaloosa County sheriff's deputy was shot and killed in July following a standoff with a man who had barricaded himself inside a home.

Okaloosa County Sheriff Charles Morris was suspended by Gov. Charlie Crist in February after he was arrested by FBI agents while on a gambling trip to Las Vegas.

Morris and his former office manager were indicted by a federal grand jury on Thursday on theft, money laundering and conspiracy charges. Prosecutors allege Morris and his former office manager, Teresa Adams, created fictitious bonuses for sheriff's department employees then pocketed some of the money.

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[strangenh]

Sad. Poorly written story, but sad. WTF was that all really about?

 

[JMody]

Damn. RIP!

 

[Jamie]

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?, over.

 

[TXDMERC]

how did that happen the sheriffs should have had their guns drawn and aimed at him if he tried to make a move ,if they saw him at the range,, if they used common sense they wound be alive...and how did a guy with a record be able to get in a range or have a gun in his hands in the first place i seen the article of the suspect in cuffs form a recent time....

 

[z0mbi]

Sad. Poorly written story, but sad. WTF was that all really about?

Sounds like another racist right wing gun nut going on a rampage. When are they gonna ban guns already and solve this problem?

 

[Zappa]

That really sucks for the cops and their families [sad2]

Thankfully they got the scumbag and sent him on the fast track to hell.
They also saved the taxpayers a shitload of cash incarcerating this maggot for who knows how many years.

 

[Jose]

Reading that article made my head hurt. The damn reporter should be fired. It's almost impossible to piece what happened from it.

And what the hell is the relevance to this story of the sheriff being arrested by the FBI and removed from office by the governor for some crimes committed in LV?

 

[K-DUB]

Reading that article made my head hurt. The damn reporter should be fired. It's almost impossible to piece what happened from it.

No kidding. What passes for journalism & good writing these days is stunning.

Too bad for the 2 officers though.

 

[HKdrummer]

ummm granted I don't have the details but from what I can surmise, I'm very curious as to why for starters would you approach this guy at a gun range. If it was absolutely important to do so wouldn't you go there with maybe more than two guys and maybe be extremely prepared for this type of thing? Like I said I don't have all the facts and reading that was like listening to a crack head with no teeth but still, sounds like this is just a huge mess, and now two families are dealing with the loss of two good people. [sad2]

 

[atilla]

ummm granted I don't have the details but from what I can surmise, I'm very curious as to why for starters would you approach this guy at a gun range. If it was absolutely important to do so wouldn't you go there with maybe more than two guys and maybe be extremely prepared for this type of thing? Like I said I don't have all the facts and reading that was like listening to a crack head with no teeth but still, sounds like this is just a huge mess, and now two families are dealing with the loss of two good people. [sad2]

i was wondering this myself. if there was anywhere that the suspect would surely be armed it would be at a firing range.

 

[matt1956]

He went from just being disagreeable to using deadly force in a matter of seconds. It was a very aggressive move with a concealed weapon on his part."

not for nothing, but what kind of BS is that?

he was at a flipping firing range!!!

they KNEW he would be armed!

this is very sad and i am in no means trying to make light of it, but wouldn't it have made sense to conduct this arrest somewhere other then the gun range?

maybe they felt they had an advantage, but really, to expect that someone at a range is not carrying a concealed firearm as well as what is on the table is a bit... well..

anyway, I feel sadness for the officers, just think that a bit more caution would be used approaching a man at the range.

 

[Underwhere]

I can't make sense of that article at all. I still can't understand it.

 

[dwarven1]

ummm granted I don't have the details but from what I can surmise, I'm very curious as to why for starters would you approach this guy at a gun range.

I have to agree with this; I'm sorry to hear that two deputies are dead, but they were pretty stupid to try and arrest this guy at a gun range.

 

[JMody]

Yeah. It will be nice when more details become available.

 

[Lynne]

Yeah. It will be nice when more details become available.

By someone more fluent with the English language.