Here's one article:
And here's another:4 police officers shot executing search warrant in New Jersey; 2 seriously wounded
Bureau News
September 24th, 2009
4 NJ police officers shot serving search warrant
LAKEWOOD, N.J. — Gunfire erupted as a police tactical squad executed a no-knock search warrant in a New Jersey suburb Thursday, leaving four officers and a suspect shot.
One Lakewood police officer who was shot in the face and another who was shot in the foot were taken to a hospital, Deputy Chief Michael Mohel of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office said. Two others sustained minor injuries when they were struck in their bulletproof vests.
The suspect, Jamie Gonzalez, 39, was taken to a hospital with multiple gunshot wounds, Mohel said.
There was no word on their conditions and the names of the officers have not been released.
Police had planned to search the home in the town about 35 miles east of Trenton for narcotics and weapons, Mohel said.
The shooting comes more than two months after Jersey City police Det. Marc DiNardo was shot in the face storming an apartment where two armed robbery suspects were holed up. Four other officers were wounded in the gun battle and the suspects were killed.
DiNardo was taken off life support and pronounced dead one day before his 38th birthday.
Lakewood was once known as the resort in the pines for wealthy New Yorkers in the 1800s and early 1900s. The Rockefellers and Goulds built mansions there. The township has a large Orthodox Jewish population and has one of the largest yeshivas in the world, Beth Medrash Govoha.
In recent decades, some sections of Lakewood have been plagued by troubles with drugs and gangs.
Now, just how many guns can you think of that can "SPRAY BULLETS" of .357 Magnum? No doubt the suspect was shot many times and in critical condition instead of DEAD is because they probably used pea-shooter 9mm and hosed him down with their MP5's.4 Officers Shot in Raid at New Jersey Home
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: September 24, 2009
LAKEWOOD, N.J. (AP) — A gunman opened fire early Thursday on officers who burst into a home in central New Jersey during a drug and gun raid, wounding four officers, one critically, while spraying bullets from atop a staircase, the authorities said.
Patrolman Jonathan Wilson of the Lakewood Police Department was shot in the face and was in critical but stable condition at a hospital. Officials were hopeful that he would survive, but said he was in danger of losing an eye. “He is in good spirits, and he’s communicating,” said Marlene Lynch Ford, the Ocean County prosecutor.
She identified the gunman as Jamie Gonzalez, 39, and said he had been shot many times and was in critical condition.
Lt. Greg Meyer was shot in the foot, and was in good condition at the hospital after surgery. Two other Lakewood officers, Sgt. Louis Sasso and Patrolman Leonard Nieves Sr. were treated and released.
Those participating in the raid included officers from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the New Jersey State Police, the Ocean County prosecutor’s office and the Lakewood Police Department. Armed with a search warrant that did not require them to knock first, the team entered a single-family split-level home in Lakewood Township, about 40 miles southeast of Trenton, at about 2:25 a.m., officials said.
The officers knocked down the door with a battering ram and were going upstairs when Mr. Gonzalez started shooting, the authorities said.
The house was searched for evidence, but Ms. Ford would not say whether any drugs or additional weapons had been found, nor would she describe the underlying drug and weapons case.
Mr. Gonzalez was charged with four counts of attempted murder, as well as possession of illegal weapons and receiving stolen property.
The .357 Magnum used to shoot the officers had been reported stolen, Ms. Ford said.
A second man who was in the house was also in custody, but had not been charged as of Thursday evening. The first assistant Ocean County prosecutor, Ronald DeLigny, said it did not appear that the other man had been involved in the shooting, but added that he might be implicated in the guns and drugs case.
As far as the suspect is concerned, he gave a pretty good accounting of himself by hitting four officers from a relatively stable and stationary position at the top of the staircase.
I hope all the officers come out okay, but even this incident still makes me question the pervasiveness of using these no-knock warrants. I'd REALLY like to see just what information they had taken to the judge to get the no-knock warrant approved. For all we know he was likely a petty drug "dealer" who kept his friends supplied and no more, and perhaps committed a weapons violation ala-Randy Weaver style. That kind of prosecution does NOT warrant these kind of tactics. From what they've released so far, I can't see the need for a tactical team and no-knock warrant being served. Turn off the water to his house (and close the house valve to the curb), turn off the power, do a regular warrant service announcing yourselves and that the house is surrounded and provide ID along with a copy of the warrant.
For the cop's sake, I sure hope this is the guy they were really looking for and he's dirty as hell, but I sure hope they have a LOT more than what they've provided to the media - because they sure haven't impressed me and especially using those tactics.
