Deputy shot while directing school traffic in apparent ambush

Antwan Harris and Paul Murphy | WWL-TV, New Orleans

Show Caption Hide Caption Update on deputy shot IMG_6073

PARADIS, La. — A St. Charles Parish deputy was shot Thursday in an apparent ambush, according to Capt. Pat Yoes, a spokesman for the St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office.

The deputy, identified as Burt Hazeltine, was directing school bus traffic when he was shot multiple times, Yoes said. The deputy was rushed from Paradis, a town about 25 miles away from New Orleans, to University Hospital in New Orleans.

St. Charles Parish Sheriff Greg Champagne said Hazeltine was shot three times and was hit in the face, the right elbow and near his left eye.

"He has a bullet lodged behind his eye," Champagne said.

"We had a deputy who directing traffic in a school zone, giving access for the buses to get off the road," Yoes said. "He was approached by an individual in the parking lot of Time Saver in apparent ambush."

Hazeltine is listed in stable, but guarded condition. According to Champagne, the deputy was alert after the shooting.

"They're doing very well. He has strong family support," Champagne said. "We're optimistic that he is going to survive and recover."

A subject is in custody, according to Yoes. Nearby deputies were able to catch the suspect almost immediately after the shooting. The suspect, who in his 50s, has two guns in his possession, Champagne said, when he was apprehended.

According to the sheriff's office, traffic is being diverted on U.S. 90 in the Paradis area from four lanes to two lanes. Anyone traveling in that area is encourage to take an alternative route.

Schools in the area, specifically R.J. Vial Elementary School and J.B. Martin Middle School, were placed on lockdown immediately after shooting, though that has since been lifted.