What should have been a routine warrant service call turned into a deadly gunfight in Charlotte, North Carolina on Monday, leaving four law enforcement officers and one suspect dead. The incident occurred when officers with the U.S. Marshals Task Force arrived at a house to serve warrants against Terry Clark Hughes Jr.
Authorities identified the fallen officers as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Officer Joshua Eyer, Deputy U.S. Marshal Thomas M. Weeks Jr., and North Carolina Department of Adult Correction officers Sam Poloche and Alden Elliott. All four officers were members of a U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force.
The shooting took place around 1:30 p.m. at a two-story home on Galway Drive, where Hughes was living. He was wanted for eluding arrest and possession of a firearm by a felon. Hughes opened fire from the second story of the house and unleashed several rounds upon approaching officers.
An armored vehicle arrived to help remove the wounded officers and Hughes came out of the house upon the vehicles arrival with a gun in hand. The officers believed there was imminent threat and shot Hughes in self defense. After negotiations, two women inside the house, including a 17-year-old girl, were taken into custody without charges.
All four officers were transported to the hospital where three were pronounced dead, and the fourth died several hours later. Officials are still piecing together the events leading up to the shootout and investigating where Hughes obtained the AR-15-style rifle and 40-caliber handgun used in the shooting.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper mourned the loss of the officers during a news conference, calling them “good ones, people that you could trust, people that you could count on.” President Joe Biden also expressed his condolences and called for stricter gun control measures in response to the incident.
The four other injured officers were taken to the hospital and at least two have now been released. Chief Johnny Jennings expressed that he expected all of them to make a full recovery, thankfully. Since 2005, 46 first responders have died in 21 mass killings where they were the only victims, according to a database compiled by AP, USA Today, and Northeastern University.
Two of the officers who lost their lives, Sam Poloche and Alden Elliott, had served 14 years with the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction before joining the task force. Eyer had been with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police for six years, while Weeks spent eight years with U.S. Customs and Border Protection before starting with the Marshals in February 2011.
Hughes had an extensive criminal history, having served time in prison following multiple felony convictions including breaking and entering, fleeing to elude, possession of a firearm, and drug-related charges. He was wanted on several active warrants at the time of the shooting.
The tragic incident marked the sixth time this year that an officer has been killed while trying to serve papers. In January, a deputy was fatally shot in Mountain View, Ark., and a police sergeant was killed in Sheridan, Wyo., while serving a trespass warning in February. All four officers who died in Charlotte were fathers with multiple years of service under their belts.
