DC Mayor Muriel Bowser attends Valentine’s Day event after 3 police officers shot serving warrant
WASHINGTON - Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser attended a scheduled Valentine’s Day event Wednesday hours after three police officers were shot and wounded while serving a warrant at a home in the southeast.
The event called "Red, White & You" brought together nearly 300 District seniors to celebrate Valentine’s Day with food, craft making, and music at the Deanwood Recreation Center.
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DC Mayor Muriel Bowser attends Valentine’s Day event after 3 police officers shot serving warrant
Bowser briefly mentioned the shootings during the event, saying "I’m pleased to say that we think they’re going to be just fine."
"They show up every single day to do their job for DC. Let’s hear it for MPD. Sadly, in the course of doing their job, somebody discharged their weapon, three officers were shot and taken to a local hospital," Bowser said. "It goes to show you how important it is to support our police, to make sure we’re hiring the best of the best police To make sure as a community that if we see something wrong, that we’re calling on MPD. Because MPD is going to show up for us every single time."
Bowser then continued with the event.
A spokesperson for the mayor’s office added she has checked in on the injured officers, their families, and the hospital staff caring for them.
Officials say three officers with the criminal apprehension unit responded to a residence in the 5000 block of Hanna Place around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday to serve an arrest warrant for cruelty to animals when an occupant of the home opened fire.
All three were transported to nearby hospitals with injuries considered not to be life-threatening. A fourth officer was also injured, but not by gunfire.
"One officer was struck twice," said Gregg Pemberton, head of the Washington police union. "Luckily, his ballistic armor absorbed both rounds. He's going to be okay."
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"The other two officers were struck in the lower extremities. Some pretty serious injuries but non-life-threatening, thankfully. They'll have some serious recovery time, but I think they'll be back on the street sooner than later," Pemberton said. He added that they were "seasoned" police officers.
DC Mayor Muriel Bowser attends Valentine’s Day event after 3 police officers shot serving warrant
When asked about Bower’s reaction to the shooting by FOX 5’s David Kaplan, Pemberton said she has been a big advocate for police officers through what he called the "defund the police movement" and "other anti-police rhetoric that's been out there."
"I imagine we'll hear from her or her team this afternoon," Pemberton said. "She's always very concerned about our members. It's really not the Executive Branch we're worried about. It's the City Council and they're just obvious despise for police officers here in the city."