Detroit shooting ends in nightmare for father-son cops

Allie Gross | Detroit Free Press

Show Caption Hide Caption Chief James Craig addresses the media after death of officer Glenn Doss "He fought a good fight. He is truly what we call one of Detroit's finest. He is what we call an American hero. He did what we expect each and every officer to do: Go out and serve this community with distinction and honor," said DPD Chief James Craig.

DETROIT — In the flurry of scanner traffic Wednesday after a Detroit police officer was shot in the head, one request stood out: "Please pray for my son."

"My son is an officer in #7 and he has been shot in the head, I am trying to get to the hospital," said Officer Glenn Doss. "I'd like everyone to please pray for my son, he's only been on the job for two years. Please pray for my son."

On Wednesday night, Doss' 25-year-old son, also named Glenn, was shot responding to a domestic violence call. He was listed in critical condition at Detroit Receiving Hospital on Thursday afternoon.

"We've been here so many times before, standing in the same spot. It reminds us of the work officers do day in and day out and the sacrifices they and their family make as we have to uphold us as a team, as a Detroit police department, as a city, but certainly a family of injured officers," 1st Assistant Chief LaShinda Stair said Thursday morning.

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About 10:40 p.m. Wednesday, police were dispatched to a home in the 5500 block of McDougall after receiving a call about a domestic violence issue. The 43-year-old man, suspected of later shooting Doss, is believed to have made the original phone call, saying he had just assaulted his wife. Shortly afterward, as police were en route, they received a second call from a woman saying that the man was firing shots.

When police arrived, they noticed a man hanging out of a window and he appeared to have a weapon.

"Next thing they know, they see the muzzle flash, hear the gunfire," Stair said during a news conference following the shooting. It was at this moment, she said, that officers realized one of their own had been shot.

"A scout car looked over and noticed that his partner had been injured. He called out to let everyone know that indeed we had an officer who had been shot," Stair said, noting that the partner drove the injured officer directly to Detroit Receiving Hospital.

Motor City 911, a local blogger who follows the Detroit police scanner, posted Thursday the conversation among police officers following the shooting.

The conversation included Doss' father asking for support and prayers, but it also highlighted an intense situation. Officers not only were dealing with Doss' shooting but a barricaded gunman.

"Per his wife, he has two or three weapons in his home," one officer said over the dispatch, warning officers on the scene.

The officers explained how they worked to get the wife and the three children out of the house, leaving only the "offender and the dog" inside.

Later, an officer gave an update on Doss in the midst of the standoff: "Everyone is doing a great job, we got him at the hospital."

Then Doss' father came on the line sharing that it was his son who had been shot and that he hoped others would pray for him.

"Prayers are coming from all of us in the station center and those on the road, sir," an officer responded.

Following the shooting, police continued to make efforts to apprehend the suspect, speaking with him through a bullhorn from an armored vehicle. Michigan State Police, the Wayne County SWAT Team, DTE, American Red Cross, the Detroit Fire Department and Detroit EMS were all on hand to assist.

Eventually, police used teargas to drive the man out of the home and arrest him.

The case has been handed over to the homicide unit.

The suspect's family told police that the man has a history of mental illness.

According to police, the suspect has faced charges for drugs and assault but has no convictions. He is registered as owning several weapons.

Police are looking at whether the situation could have played out differently.

"This is a senseless tragedy that has shaken the entire law enforcement community and the citizens of our great city," said Mark Diaz, president of the Detroit police union. "There are so many variables we can point to right now to say what could've prevented what happened last night to our dear friend and colleague. Right now, we will address the DPD leadership in a non-public forum and ask everyone to join us in focusing all thoughts and prayers on Glenn and his family."

On Thursday night, Detroit’s police chief stood outside Detroit Receiving Hospital and blamed the shooting in part on inadequate care for people with mental illness. Chief James Craig said that although police work had always been hazardous, it was more dangerous than ever now because of society’s failure to treat many of those with mental illness.

“When are we going to realize? We need to do more,” Craig said.

In recent years, “the number of these barricaded suspects has roughly doubled ... and more often than not, these individuals are mentally ill — the jail is not the place to treat them,” he said.

“This is not a Detroit thing; this is national. When will it end?” Craig said.

Doss ' injury comes after a particularly violent year for Detroit police officers — eight officers were either shot or killed in the first eight months of 2017.

Nationally, however, the number of police officers killed in the line of duty has been on the decline, with 46 killed in 2017 — a 43% decrease from the year prior.

Follow Allie Gross on Twitter: @Allie_Elisabeth