Jul 17, 2009 2:08 am US/Eastern
JCPD Chief: We Gotta Get These Guns Off Streets
Alleged Drug Dealers, Robbers Had Been Under Surveillance By Officers Before All Hell Broke Loose Thursday Morning
Pump-Action Automatic Shotgun Used Against Cops, 5 Wounded
By KATHRYN BROWN, CBS 2 HD News
JERSEY CITY, N.J. (CBS) ―
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Five police officers were shot and two suspects were killed in an early morning shootout in Jersey City on Thursday.
CBS
Jersey City looked more like a war zone early Thursday morning.
In the hours since the deadly shootout that injured five police officers doctors have been working furiously to save the lives of the two most critically hurt.
The gunfight erupted just before dawn Thursday during a police stakeout in Jersey City.
Officers were tracking the two people seen in a surveillance video robbing and shooting a man last month.
But they said the suspects -- Hassan Shakur and Amanda Anderson -- were ready for them and armed with lethal firepower.
"It's a combat weapon. It's got a stock that's retractable. It had a strap on it where he had numerous shells on it. He was ready to battle," Jersey City Police Chief Thomas Comey said of Shakur.
In a hail of bullets both suspects were shot and killed, but not before they managed to inflict a lot of damage.
Three officers were grazed by gunfire.
Of the two still hospitalized Thursday night, Jersey City Officer Michael Comacho was shot in the neck and 10-year-veteran Officer Marc DiNardo shot in the face. He went into cardiac arrest at least five times on the way to the hospital. Both remained in critical condition on Thursday night.
Emergency Medical Technician Ashleigh Grillot was among those who frantically worked to save DiNardo's life.
"They had him by the arms and legs. They got him on a stretcher," Grillot said.
As both officers hung on, Chief Comey lashed out.
"I don't know how many times a big city chief has to stand here and say we need help to stop these weapons from hitting the streets. This weapon is manufactured for no other reason than to hunt man," Comey said. "So we should stop being afraid of the NRA and start being afraid of our own rights."
Moments before the shooting started residents of the apartment building where the pair had barricaded themselves ran for their lives, evacuated by police as gunfire rang out.
"It scared me. My son woke up he was like 'Mom, it ain't nothing,'" said resident Monique Glascar. "I said, 'No son, they shooting out there, so we got to get up, put anything on, let's go.'"
Jersey City Police Director Sam Jefferson said the incident went according to training police officers receive, despite the seemingly violent outcome of the shootout.
"All things being equal, this went according to the training that our officers get, according to God's will," said Jefferson.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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