UPPER DEERFIELD TWP. -- When Gerald Sykes woke up in the hospital Saturday morning, one of the first things he asked his family was "did they get the bad guys that shot me?"

"Jerry, you were shot by the police," his step-daughter Diana LaFalce told him.

The 76-year-old man was "flabbergasted," LaFalce recalled Tuesday from her family's Upper Deerfield Township home where the shooting occurred.

"His eyes got huge and said 'no way, that was not the police that shot me' and I said 'I'm sorry that absolutely was'."

"He just kept shaking his head," LaFalce said. "He couldn't believe it."

What began as a 911 hang-up on Friday night ended with Sykes laying in a hospital bed Tuesday morning, with three bullets still inside him.

Officials say Sykes was shot by New Jersey State Police troopers after officers were sent to his Centerton Road home -- the wrong address, officials have since said -- to check on a 911 hang-up call.

The New Jersey Attorney General's Shooting Response Team which is investigating the shooting said two uniformed officers were sent to the house in error. After no response at the front door, they went around back to a deck where they knocked and announced themselves, according to the investigation. Then there was "an exchange of gunfire" with one trooper firing four rounds and Sykes firing one round.

The state does not say who fired first. Sykes' family say police fired and then Sykes -- armed with a shotgun with birdshot in it to wound intruders but not kill them -- shot back, thinking those on his deck were intruders.

On Tuesday, LaFalce and Rich Kaser, a longtime family friend and attorney, walked around the Sykes' home as they recounted the events of that night.

A pool of dried blood remained on the porch and step just outside of the front door. Scattered around the yard were gloves and other disposable protective gear left by the rescue squads.

In the backyard, two sets of French doors line the deck -- one still marked with three bullet holes and shattered glass from where its believed the troopers fired through into the house.

In the other door, lower, is a larger hole, apparently the result of the single shotgun blast fired by Sykes.

LaFalce said the Sykes' miniature Doberman, Sarah, woke them up the night of the shooting. Margot Sykes, 80, looked out onto the deck and saw shadows and woke her husband. They both went into the great room and saw "dark figures" through the doors on their deck outside. It was then that Sykes retrieved his shotgun and soon after, the shooting took place.

Around midnight, LaFalce got the call from her mother.

"She was crying, close to hysteria," LaFalce recounted Tuesday. "She said 'Jerry's been shot. They shot him right through the door ...'"

After calling 911 to summon help for Sykes, LaFalce and her husband, Ronald, "jumped into the car and drove right over," but Centerton Road, near her parents' home, was blocked.

Later, when she was finally able to get information from police, she was told her mother was taken to the state police's Bridgeton station but she still didn't know what had come of her step-father. Her mother, her nightgown still covered in blood, told LaFalce what happened.

Sykes himself had called 911, too. He was so weak from losing blood that he had gone back to his bed and made the call.

"He told them 'Please send the police. I've been shot. I am going to die,'" Kaser recounted from his conversations with the family.

Kaser said Sykes told him the 911 operator asked about guns in the house.

"What are you worried about guns for? I am dying," Kaser said Sykes told the operator.

LaFalce said the family believes it was about 45 minutes before an ambulance arrived. Her mother propped Sykes up the best she could on her shoulder and got him to the front door, but was told by a 911 operator that he had to come down the steps by himself, LaFalce said. He did, but then collapsed on the lawn.

The family and their attorney say Sykes was handcuffed before being taken and flown to Cooper University Hospital, Camden.

In previous requests for comment on details in the case other than what was provided in the Attorney General's Office's official statement, the state has said it could not comment, citing the ongoing investigation.

The two unidentified troopers involved have been placed on paid administrative leave, authorities said. One of those two was injured by either the birdshot from Sykes' gun or flying glass, authorities believe.

The couple, married for about 22 years and living for the past 15 years in the Centerton Road home that they built, still hasn't been contacted by any authorities, LaFalce said.

Kaser, who has been one of Sykes' regular visitors at Cooper since the shooting, said he asked Sykes what he wanted to say about the incident.

"He is angry that this happened because it should not have happened. He can't understand how or why it happened," Kaser said.

"He still respects law enforcement, but he certainly is looking at that in a little bit different light."

Bill Gallo Jr. may be reached at bgallo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Bill Gallo Jr. on Twitter @bgallojr. Find NJ.com on Facebook.