CHARLOTTE, NC – A fatal shootout in Charlotte, North Carolina, left four law enforcement officers dead and four others wounded. The incident escalated as officers attempted to serve a warrant to a man wanted for firearm possession. The shooting that began with the wanted man attacking the team from the U.S. Marshals Task Force was further aggravated by a second shooter opening fire after the officers killed the man.
Remarking on the incident’s significance as the deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement since the 2016 protest sniper attack in Dallas, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Johnny Jennings mourned the loss of the officers. He lauded the officers for courageously trying to maintain community safety.
After a grueling three-hour stand-off, the scene at the crime site resembled a war zone, with the suburban Charlotte home torn apart and armored vehicles strewn across yards. The U.S. Marshals Task Force had taken fire as they advanced toward the house, killing the wanted suspect, identified as Terry Clark Hughes Jr, 39.
A second person from inside the house then proceeded to open fire on the officers, which resulted in the injury of another task force member. The prompt response of the police department’s Special Weapons and Tactics Team led to two females exiting the house, who were later taken into police custody.
The fatalities included Marshal’s Service agent Sam Poloche, the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction officers Alden Elliot and Joshua Eyer, and Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer Joshua Eyer.
Constant gunfire rocked the neighborhood for several minutes. Neighbor Rissa Reign described a flurry of cop cars rushing into the area following the first, second, and third bouts of shots heard in rapid succession.
SWAT teams on armored trucks followed soon after, engaging the shooters. Alex Rivera, a nearby resident, described the rush of police cars and gunfire as a frightening scene in an otherwise quiet neighborhood. Grieving for the officers, another neighbor and Desert Storm veteran, William Cunningham, expressed his shock at witnessing such violence up close.
In the aftermath of the chaotic incident, four local schools went into immediate lockdown, which was later lifted. Residents were urged to remain indoors as police blocked off the neighborhood, awaiting the all-clear signal.