By Kevin Shalvey
(Source Smartnews)
A procession of police cruisers with their lights flashing followed an ambulance through Charlotte, North Carolina, late on Monday, as the emergency vehicle carried the body of one of the four law enforcement officials killed earlier in the day.
Officer Joshua Eyer’s body was being transported from the hospital to the Medical Examiner’s Office, law enforcement said on social media.
“Our prayers are with Officer Eyer’s family and the families of the three other officers who lost their lives in the line of duty today,” the police said.
Eyer, of the Charlotte-Mecklenberg Police, and the three other law enforcement officials were shot and killed as they attempted to serve two warrants in Charlotte on Monday, city officials said.
A man, later identified by authorities as Terry Clark Hughes, Jr, 39, allegedly began firing at about 1:30 Monday,striking multiple officers, police said. The U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force had been serving active felony warrants for possession of a firearm by a felon and felony flee to elude.
Eight officers were hit with gunfire and transported to local hospitals.
Mayor Vi Lyles asked for everyone in Charlotte to join her in “uplifting the grieving families.”
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic loss of Joshua Michael Eyer, who was a loved member of our city family who dedicated his life to serving our community,” she said.
George Dunlap, chairman of the county commissioners board, issued a statement calling the shooting a “senseless and preventable” tragedy.
The community feels “the shock and the pain” of Monday’s shooting, added Dena Diorio, Mecklenburg’s county manager.
“We stand ready to support our law enforcement colleagues and their families in any way we can as we all work through this heartbreaking situation,” she said on social media.
As the procession of police cruisers drove past the hospital’s emergency room late on Monday, crowds of hospital staffers in scrubs stood outside watching.
“Praying and sending light & support to the families trying to make sense of this disaster,” Dr. Raynard Washington, the county’s health director, said on social media. “We should all be tired of our guns in the wrong hands problem. Here’s to hope.”
