(WHYY Newsworks video)
A Delaware State Police trooper has died after being shot during an altercation with two men outside a Wawa on Pulaski Highway in Bear.
State Police Superintendent Col. Nathaniel McQueen made that announcement at Christiana Hospital just before 5 p.m. ” This is a sad day for our state and for the Delaware State Police family,” McQueen said. “We ask that you keep the trooper’s family and the members of the Delaware State Police family in your thoughts and prayers.
Gov. John Carney ordered both the U.S. and state flags to be flown at half-staff in memory of Delaware State Police Corporal Stephen J. Ballard.
Ballard, 32, was an eight and a half-year veteran of the Delaware State Police and was assigned to patrol at Troop 2, Glasgow.
Carney stated earlier, “My heart is with the officer’s family and the officers who have served beside him. Delaware’s law enforcement officers go to work every day knowing they put their lives on the line to protect ours. We are incredibly indebted to their bravery and service.”
Police said one suspect was arrested on scene by responding officers. The second suspect fled on foot and is now barricaded inside a home in the 500 block of St. Michaels Drive in the Brick Mill Farm development in Middletown. That’s about 15 miles away from the shooting scene in Bear. McQueen said as of 5 p.m., that second suspect was still firing shots at officers.
That’s about 15 miles away from the shooting scene in Bear. McQueen said as of 5 p.m., that second suspect was still firing shots at officers..
Police agencies continue to operate on St. Michaels Drive in the Brick Mill Farms Development, near Middletown. The subject continues to remain barricaded inside the residence and is armed with an unknown type of gun.
At 8:22 p.m. Wednesday , the Explosives Ordinance Disposal Unit (EOD) used an explosive breeching charge on the front door. At that time, no entry was made into the residence.
Around 4:00 a.m. today, officers once again came under fire from the suspect. Allied agencies used explosives at numerous windows but have not entered the residence.
Multiple Special Operations Response Teams and Conflict Management Teams from allied police agencies are attempting to make contact with the male subject and are continuing to try to persuade him to surrender.
At 9:17 a.m., the male suspect exited the residence and engaged police, according to troopers. The suspect was then shot by law enforcement. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:29 a.m. Further details will be released at a press conference today at Troop 2 in Glasgow, a short distance away from where the trooper was shot to death.
Residents in the area remain under an evacuation order. The Odessa Fire Company, located at 304 Main Street in Odessa, has opened its facility to temporarily house the evacuated residents of Brick Mill Farms Development.
