BEDFORD PARK, Ill. (CBS) — We were still waiting to find out late Monday about charges being approved for two men who were taken into custody in connection with the shooting of a Bedford Park police officer this past weekend.
It happened early Sunday morning near a gas station in the 6800 block of Archer Road, just south of the Bedford Park Police Department.
CBS 2 Investigator Megan Hickey is told the officer, who is a veteran with more than 15 years with the Bedford Park Police Department, had emergency surgery on Sunday.
At last check, he was still in the ICU. He was shot several times, but is expected to make a full recovery.
Police said around 3:40 a.m. Sunday, officers responded to a car crash and discovered a stolen gray BMW that had collided with a dumpster.
That car had been reported stolen in a carjacking in Chicago.
Police said surveillance video showed two men running into a wooded area behind a nearby Speedway gas station.
The two men then entered a car – and when officers moved in to investigate, one suspect pulled out a gun, shooting the officer multiple times.
Two adults were taken into custody, and two guns were recovered at the scene.
“I absolutely want to commend the responding officers who got there quickly, were able to put a tourniquet on that officer that likely saved his life, and were able to get them to the hospital quickly,” said Joe Gamaldi, vice president of the National Fraternal Order of Police.
Gamaldi told us this officer is one of at least 335 officers shot in the line of duty across the country so far this year.
According the FOP’s October 2023 report, that number surpasses the total for 2022, which was 331, and is on track to surpass the total of 346 in 2021 – which, according to the FBI, was the deadliest year for officers since 1995.
“It is completely historic. It’s unprecedented,” said Gamaldi, “and we know why it’s happening – the inflammatory rhetoric towards police officers; the revolving-door criminal justice system where criminals are no longer held accountable for their actions.”
Where does Illinois stack up compared with the rest of the country? The Bedford Park officer is one of at least nine who have been shot in the line of duty so far this year.
Texas leads the country with 26 officers shot in the line of duty, while no officers at all have been shot in at least 10 states.
“I think it’s just a very stark reminder to the public just how dangerous our job is,” Gamaldi said.
Police departments across the country have extended their prayers to the Bedford Park officer for his recovery.
Bedford Park police said there is no indication that the officers fired back in this incident.
Bedford Park police said late Monday that they are in contact with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office with regard to possible charges.
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