A police officer is recovering after being shot multiple times in Springfield, Massachusetts Wednesday night. Authorities say the shooting was one of several, occurring during and after an investigation in the area of Mason Square. Also injured were two construction workers and a bystander.
City leaders and police say a decorated member of the force is now on a long road to recovery after he was shot on State Street – one of several incidents that had officers responding across the city.
“We have two carloads of shooters - we have a police officer who was shot and calls out on the radio that he was shot, so, you have officers responding there - you have officers pursuing suspects in two different locations, almost simultaneously - all while you're dealing with somebody that you see and roll call with every day, who’s suffering from two gunshot wounds in the middle of State Street,” said Springfield Deputy Chief Steven Kent, discussing at least three shootings that occurred in the city Wednesday night.
According to the police department, plainclothes detectives had been working on an “unrelated investigation” on College Street when they were shot at by a group of individuals in a Honda Civic around 10:40 p.m.
While police were searching for suspects afterwards, suspects in another vehicle, a Jeep Cherokee, fired at an unmarked cruiser with an AR-15-style rifle and other firearms near the intersection of State Street and Hunter Place.
No detectives were wounded in either case, but an officer who “came across the shooting on his way into work” was then shot at, suffering wounds to the face and leg.
Springfield Police Superintendent Lawrence Akers indicated the suspects may have not realized they were shooting at officers, and in fact, may have mistaken them for “competitors."
“The vehicles that were involved in this were vehicles that had no regard for life,” Akers said, referring to the shooting suspects. “It's not known at this time, but we don't believe that they knew that they were shooting at police officers.”
Akers described the wounded officer as a seven-year veteran of the force and recipient of the department’s Medal of Valor award in 2023.
While he suffered serious injuries, police say he is expected to recover and has been moved to a Boston-area hospital for treatment.
Also injured Wednesday night were two MassDOT workers. Officials say the driver of the Honda Civic allegedly struck them while driving in the area of the South End Bridge, where construction work had been taking place.
Three occupants were arrested on a nearby I-91 on-ramp – all between the ages of 17 and 18, and residents of Springfield.
Four more arrests were made when the Jeep was located at Randall Place. Included were three of the alleged occupants – all Springfield residents, including a 16-year-old male who had been out on bail in connection with a shooting – a detail Sarno homed in on as he reiterated claims that local judges have been too lenient on firearms offenders.
“Some of our judges just embolden these individuals - they feel they can do whatever they want to do, not only to our brave and dedicated police officers, but to our residents and business community because they face no repercussions whatsoever,” Sarno said.
Also arrested on firearms charges at Randall Place was a 31-year-old man, found at the home where the Jeep was located.
The police department noted that five of the suspects had previously been arrested on firearms charges.
Officials also noted a bystander was injured over the course of the night. Exact details on where they were hurt were not released. Akers said they appeared to have been injured while trying to escape one of the frays. Their injuries are not believed to be serious.
The Springfield Police Department's summary of the night and arrests can be found here.
