WASHINGTON 鈥� A suspect is dead and a sheriff鈥檚 deputy is in critical condition after a shooting in Chestertown, Maryland, early Thursday that began as a domestic-violence call.
The Maryland State Police said in a statement that Deputy First Class Warren Hogan, 32, of the Queen Anne鈥檚 County Sheriff鈥檚 Department, and James Rich, 52, of the 200 block of Edmore Road, in Chestertown, on the Eastern Shore, exchanged gunfire early Thursday. Rich was pronounced dead at a hospital; Hogan is in critical condition at the University of Maryland R. Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center.
The state police said that Hogan and another deputy went to Rich鈥檚 house at about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday in response to a domestic violence complaint from Rich鈥檚 girlfriend. When they got there, both had left. It turns out that the woman鈥檚 father had picked her up and brought her to the sheriff鈥檚 office.
Hogan went back to the sheriff鈥檚 office and took the woman鈥檚 statement; then she asked Hogan to go back with her to the house so she could safely get some belongings.
When they got there, Rich had returned, and he and the woman got into an argument, the state police said. Rich went into a back room and emerged with a shotgun, firing a round. He then approached Hogan, and they exchanged gunfire at close range, the state police said.
At a news conference Thursday morning, Dr. Thomas Scalea, of the Shock Trauma Center, said that 鈥渁 close-range shotgun blast is a devastating injury,鈥� and that Hogan was 鈥渁wake and talking but clearly critically injured.鈥�
He added, 鈥淲e are hopeful; we鈥檒l see how things go over the next few days and few weeks.鈥�
Rich鈥檚 teenage son was at home at the time of the shooting, the statement said; he wasn鈥檛 hurt, but there鈥檚 no word on where he is now.
Hogan was wearing a body camera. The state police said in the statement that 鈥渁t this stage鈥� of the investigation, the footage won鈥檛 be released.
