A gunman, barricaded in the shopping area near the Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic, has reopened fire about two hours since the shooting broke out. At least three policemen and unknown number of civilians have been injured so far.
28 November 2015
Colorado Springs police have confirmed the identity of the suspected shooter as Robert L. Dear, 57.
FOX31 Denver is reporting that the suspect has been identified as Robert Lewis Dear from North Carolina, citing a “law enforcement source”. This information has not been officially confirmed with police, who posted on Twitter that the shooter’s name would “not be confirmed tonight”.
The UCCS has named the officer killed in the shooting as 44-year-old Garrett Swasey.
Two civilians and one police officer have been killed at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs, confirmed the mayor, John Suthers, and Lieutenant Catherine Buckley, spokeswoman for the Colorado Springs Police Department.
Five police officers from various agencies are among the 11 people who have been hospitalized, Lieutenant Buckley said.
Police are now saying that they are working with an explosives ordnance unit to determine whether "items" brought to the building by the suspect pose a threat.
The police standoff is over after nearly six hours. Mayor Suthers has praised all police officers involved saying that he was "incredibly impressed" with their actions, which prevented “a terrible tragedy” from deteriorating.
Officers are actively clearing the building at the moment. The police spokesperson would not give details on the type of the gun the suspect had or if any of his belongings remain in the building.
"To speculate on a motive would not be reasonable" - police spokesperson.
4:52 p.m. taken into custody. first call came in at 11:38 a.m.
5 police officers from various agencies among 11 people hospitalized
Mayor Suthers has said that there is now “no danger to the community”.
Colorado Springs’ mayor, John Suthers, has confirmed that the gunman inside the Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic has been taken into custody.
27 November 2015
“Until we have this individual and the situation is completely stabilized, it is not safe to bring people out of other buildings,” Buckley said when she was asked about evacuating people from nearby businesses, such as the King Soopers grocery store.
When a reporter asked Buckley if the suspect was shooting at propane tanks, she declined to answer.
It is unclear if the gunman has any hostages, but there are still people inside Planned Parenthood, Buckley said. Police are working with the clinic’s staff to figure out where everyone might be located and safely evacuate them.
Once they are brought out of the building, they are being brought to the Veterans Affairs hospital nearby to speak to detectives, she added.
As police work to evacuate people out of Planned Parenthood, the gunman fired on officers “recently,” she added. That is the only contact that law enforcement has had with the shooter. “We have not been in voice contact with the suspect,” Buckley noted.
Several local, state and federal law enforcement agencies are on the scene, including the Colorado Springs PD, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs PD, the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI and the ATF.
In accordance with a state law passed last year, the El Paso Sheriff’s Office will be in charge of the investigation into Colorado Springs police officers’ actions because the local force has the “probability that they were involved with this suspect,” Buckley said. Colorado Springs PD will still be in charge of investigating the suspect and the crime scene.
“We have been in contact with a suspect inside the building because the suspect has fired on our officers in the building,” said Lieutenant Catherine Buckley, the Colorado Springs PD public information officer said at a 4 p.m. local time briefing.
“This scene is going to be going on for the next several hours because there are numerous items that the suspect took with him to the Planned Parenthood building that we will have to inspect once the scene is stabilized,” she added. “This is not a stabilized situation.”
Four officers have been confirmed as injured, and there may be a fifth, Buckley said, noting that she does not know how many civilians have been injured.
So far, 20 civilians have been rescued, KRDO’s Mekialaya White reported, citing police. Many of those escorted to safety have been wearing medical scrubs or T-shirts in the accumulating snow.
Police are rescuing people trapped in the Planned Parenthood clinic and bringing them to safety in an armored vehicle. In the last round, six females and one male exited the BEARCAT and entered either ambulances or police vehicles, according to the CS Gazette’s Stephen Hobbs.
At one point during the standoff, a man wearing a handgun on his waist and an ammunition vest around his chest appeared to walk up to police to ask if he could help.
“Officers told him to leave immediately because appearing at the scene while wearing firearms and that equipment was a bad idea,” the CS Gazette reported.
Police described the gunman as a white male with a stocky build wearing a trench coat, glasses and a beard. He was holding an AK-style semi-automatic rifle at a “low, ready position,” they said on the scanner.
President Barack Obama has been briefed about the active shooting situation, White House officials said.
The New York Police Department has redeployed its Critical Response Vehicles from Black Friday protests to Planned Parenthood clinics as a precaution, the NYPD said.
At least five victims have been brought to Penrose-St. Francis Hospital, while at least three patients have arrived at Memorial Hospital, KRDO reported. The conditions of the transportees have not been announced.
“We are exchanging gunfire,” an officer said on the police scanner, which was confirmed by Buckley.
Three hostages have been rescued from a bathroom, police said on the scanner. Live feed from the site shows several people being taken into ambulances.
At least four victims have been brought to Penrose-St. Francis Hospital, while an unknown number of people will be treated at Memorial Hospital, KKTV reported. The conditions of the transportees have not been announced.
Police tweeted that there have been casualties among their ranks.
Centennial Boulevard has been closed in both directions while a King Soopers grocery store and several nearby shops are on lockdown.
The Colorado Springs mayor’s office has tweeted a warning about an “ACTIVE SHOOTER situation in progress. Avoid area of 3400 Centennial Blvd just north of Fillmore.”
Police are responding to a shooting at the Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood clinic.