One man is dead and a Laramie County Sheriff’s Deputy is in the intensive care unit of Cheyenne’s hospital following a shootout in Cheyenne on Saturday afternoon.
The Laramie County Sheriff’s office announced on Saturday evening that deputies had made contact with a suspect in the area of Cahill Park in northern Cheyenne at 2:25 p.m. Saturday following an assault call at Laramie County Community College.
Authorities said a slow-speed pursuit of the suspect’s vehicle ensued and ended about one-half mile north in the Miles Court neighborhood off of Ridge Road in north Cheyenne, where the shootout between the officer and the suspect occurred.
“One of our patrol deputies was shot and is currently in the Intensive Care Unit at the Cheyenne Regional Medical Center in stable condition,” a spokesman said. “The suspect is deceased and there is no further risk to public safety.”
The incident has been turned-over to the Department of Criminal Investigation.
An emergency dispatcher at the Laramie County Combined Communication Center, said she was working in the dispatch center at the time of the shooting.
“One of the hardest shifts I’ve worked,” the dispatcher wrote on Facebook. “The officer is in dispatch’s prayers.”
“We’re just glad the deputy is stable. Felt like for a minute the world just stopped,” she said.
Laramie County Commissioner Linda Heath was quick to wish the deputy well and to thank first responders in the community.
“Prayers for all involved: the Sheriff Deputies, their famlies, the officer who was shot, his family, our dispatchers, and AMR responders,” Heath said. “May each of you find peace and strength in our heavenly Fathers’ love.”
Other law enforcement agencies from across the state offered their support as well.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with our brothers and sisters at Laramie County Sheriff’s Office and those involved in yesterday’s tragedy in Cheyenne,” said Sweetwater County Sheriff Sheriff John Grossnickle.
“We have to continue to work together as friends and neighbors to ensure things like this never become an everyday headline here in Wyoming,” he said.
“Help us send good vibes to this deputy from a fellow agency in Laramie County! Prayers for them and their family, both blood and blue,” the Douglas Police Department wrote.
Former Cheyenne Police Chief Brian Kozak, who is running for Laramie County Sheriff, announced he was suspending his campaign in order to “focus on the deputy and the members of the Sheriff’s Office.”
No other details have been made public.
