This article is from the source 'washpo' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/shooting-reported-at-greyhound-bus-station-in-richmond-va/2016/03/31/68855882-f776-11e5-9804-537defcc3cf6_story.html

The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 4 Version 5
Virginia trooper killed in shooting at Greyhound bus station in Richmond Virginia trooper killed in shooting at Greyhound bus station in Richmond
(about 2 hours later)
RICHMOND — One Virginia State Police trooper was killed and two civilians were wounded when a gunman opened fire Thursday afternoon at a Greyhound Bus Station in downtown Richmond, according to law enforcement authorities. RICHMOND — A Virginia State Police trooper on a training exercise for a criminal interdiction squad was killed and two civilians were wounded when authorities said a man the officer had just begun to question opened fire Thursday afternoon inside a Greyhound Bus Station near downtown Richmond.
The suspected gunman was shot and killed when troopers fired, police said. Two troopers shot and killed the suspected gunman, police said.
Virginia State Police Col. W. Steven Flaherty, the superintendent, identified the trooper as Chad P. Dermyer, 37. He announced his death “with an in­cred­ibly heavy heart” and noted that the trooper is survived by his wife and two children. Police said the injured civilians suffered injuries that did not appear to be life threatening. Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. W. Steven Flaherty identified the slain trooper as Chad P. Dermyer, 37, who graduated from the academy in 2014 after having been an officer in Jackson, Mich., and in Newport News, Va.
The shooting occurred about 2:45 p.m. in an area of the city known as the Diamond after the nearby baseball stadium and near an entrance to I-95. Corinne N. Geller, a state police spokeswoman, said a trooper and the suspect were talking in the station’s entranceway, when the suspect “pulled out a gun and shot the trooper.” Flaherty learned of the shooting while attending an event honoring police officers killed in the line of duty, and as candles were being lit for those lost. He later announced the death “with an in­cred­ibly heavy heart,” and noted that Dermyer is survived by his wife, Michelle, and two children. The slain trooper grew up in Michigan, served in the U.S. Marine Corps and most recently lived in Gloucester, Va.
Flaherty said the troopers were at the station as part of a training exercise in criminal interdictions. Dermyer’s brother, John, called him “my best friend’ before being overcome by emotion during a brief telephone interview Thursday night. His wife, Jennifer, remembered her brother-in-law as “giving” man, whose death was “heartbreaking.” She described him as a “loving brother, father, son and uncle. He was very involved with his son and daughter. He was a happy guy who died doing what he loved.”
Geller said two other troopers in the station fired back and the assailant was killed. She said a weapon was recovered. The trooper who was shot was wearing a dark blue utility uniform. Reva Trammell, a Richmond City Council member, hugged a crying state trooper at the shooting scene and called Thursday “one of the saddest days I’ve ever seen in the city of Richmond. A senseless act in the city. Cruel.”
Flaherty said he learned of the shooting of his officer while Flaherty was attending a chiefs of police event and was in the midst of a candlelighting ceremony recalling officers killed last year. Police said the two civilians suffered injuries that did not appear to be life-threatening. One of the victims is a female member of the Binghamton University track team who was on her way to a meet, school officials said.
Reva Trammell, a Richmond city council member, said she hugged a crying state trooper at the scene. “This is one of the saddest days I’ve ever seen in the city of Richmond,” she said. “A senseless act in the city. Cruel.” Flaherty withheld the name of the suspect pending notification of relatives. He said a gun was recovered. He said the suspect was not from the Richmond area and had an arrest record but was not being sought.
Charles Leazott, 44-year-old who works for an electrical company across from the bus station, said he heard “the largest amount of sirens ever” just before 3 p.m. The shooting occurred about 2:45 p.m. in an area that has tried to revitalize and is known as the Diamond after the nearby minor league baseball stadium..
“It seemed like every police officer in Richmond was arriving on scene,” said Leazott, adding that authorities told employees to lock all doors. “I’ve never seen so many police officers in one place.” Flaherty said Dermyer and other troopers were at the station to train for what is called an a counterterrorism and criminal interdiction unit — police assigned to public transit areas and highways to identify and question people deemed suspicious. It is a way of intercepting drugs and guns.
He said officers wore body armor and riots shields and even forced a door open. Leazott described the situation as “intense” and said time moved very slowly, but estimated it was under control about 30 minutes after police arrived. Dermyer, wearing a dark blue uniform that resembles fatigues, had just started to question the suspected gunman when police said the suspect pulled out a gun and shot the trooper. Dermyer was not wearing a protective vest.
Authorities said Richmond police along with the FBI, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Henrico County Police, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security are assisting in the investigation. A representative at the FBI’s Richmond Field office said agents were “assembling resources, and we’re gathering information.” Flaherty said the conversation lasted only about 30 seconds. He said he did not know what drew Dermyer’s attention to the man. Two other troopers returned fire, police said. Flaherty said the squad’s training task was “if you see some suspicious behavior, go over and engage and have a conversation. That was what was taking place here.”
Thursday’s shooting in Richmond comes after several recent attacks on police officers in the Washington area — shootings that claimed the lives of four members of law enforcement in Maryland and Virginia. The police superintendent said investigators do not yet know a motive.
Two sheriff’s deputies were fatally shot 30 miles northeast of Baltimore in early February by a man wanted in the shooting of his wife, followed by the shooting of an officer in Prince William County, who was killed on her first day of patrol answering a domestic disturbance call. Flaherty said Dermyer’s colleagues “have taken this very hard because of how well he was liked. Former Marine, you know the type, the demeanor that he had and the professional image.” In January, Dermyer and fellow trooper Jeremy Hagwood chased down a pet dog named Pinta who had gotten loose and ran in traffic on two Virginia highways, according to local news accounts.
On March 13, a Prince George’s County police officer was killed in a shootout with a gunman who police said wanted to die in gun battle and had brought his brothers to videotape the encounter. The plainclothes officer was killed by a fellow officer who mistook him for a suspect, police said. Thursday’s shooting in Richmond comes after several recent attacks on police officers in the Washington area that claimed the lives of four members of law enforcement in Maryland and Virginia.
After the latest attack on Thursday, Gov. Terry McAuliffe said he spoke to Richmond’s mayor and the state police superintendent. In a statement, the governor said he “offered whatever state resources may be necessary to respond to this situation.” As darkness fell, a minivan drove by the area of the bus station flying an American flag and a sign reading, “Police Lives Matter.” On March 13, a Prince George’s County police officer was killed in a shootout with a gunman who police said wanted to die in a gun battle and had brought his brothers to videotape the encounter. The plainclothes officer was killed by a fellow officer who mistook him for a suspect, police said.
The bus station is in an industrial part of Richmond on a main thoroughfare across from a minor league baseball stadium and the Arthur Ashe Jr. Athletic Center. The city has struggled to revitalize the area, where there’s a hodgepodge of industrial businesses and a UHaul self storage center. Lights flashed on police cruisers lined up in the center of the street, and the city police mobile command center remained outside the bus station nearly five hours after the shooting. Thursday’s shooting prompted the closure of the bus terminal.
Greyhound said in a statement that the Richmond bus terminal will be closed until further notice. Service in and out of Richmond has been canceled, the carrier statement said, adding that Greyhound will reroute customers where possible. Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) called the death “senseless,” noting Dermyer was a “husband, a father and a hero who was taken from us too soon.” Flaherty said that while at the remembrance ceremony he had been thinking of the 28 police officers killed this year across the country.
The statement said no Greyhound employees were injured, and that counselors are being made available to workers and people who were in the station. “I had just thought to myself, 28 is the biggest number we’ve had in a long time,” he said. “I hope and pray that next year we don’t have 28 — not knowing that in just a few seconds out here Chad . . . ”
Hermann reported from Washington. Victoria St. Martin and Justin Jouvenal contributed to this report. His voice trailed off as he mentioned Dermyer’s name.
Hermann reported from Washington. Victoria St. Martin contributed to this report.