UPDATE (10:05 a.m.) — The Macomb police officers who were shot by an unnamed person have been released from a Peoria hospital, the police chief said Thursday morning.
A bit more than 15 hours after the two officers were shot in the 300 block of North Normal Street, the chief updated reporters during a very brief news conference. He took no questions and spoke for less than three minutes.
The chief, Jeff Hamer, said the officers were initially treated in Macomb and then taken to OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center. He said the two officers were discharged Thursday and will be sent home.
He urged people to stay away from the area around Normal Street, saying the suspect — it was unknown if it was a man or a woman — remained barricaded in the home. One person was interviewed and released last night.
The officers were at the house to serve a search warrant and when they entered the property and announced they were officers, they were shot, Hamer said.
Members of the Illinois State Police SWAT team as well as their crisis negotiation team were on hand. Also, on hand were other regional and local law enforcement groups who were helping with the investigation.
There is no threat to the community, he said. Western Illinois University closed both its Macomb campus and its one in the Quad Cities as a result of the shooting.
Hamer said the investigation into what happened will now be conducted by the Illinois State Police as required by departmental policy. There will be another update Thursday, which Hamer said would be at 3 p.m.
This story will be updated.
____________________________________________________________________________
LIVE: Macomb Police to hold press conference after officers shot Wednesday
MACOMB, Ill. (WMBD) — The police chief of this west-central Illinois city is expected to update reporters on the conditions of two officers were shot Wednesday night while trying to serve a warrant.
The press conference is to begin at 10 a.m. at Macomb City Hall.
The officers were flown to Peoria for treatment where they were listed in critical but stable condition late Wednesday.
The chief, Jeff Hamer, was also expected to give an update on situation in the 300 block of Normal Street where is part of an area of this city of roughly 20,000 that has several streets blocked off.
WMBD-TV has a crew on scene and will update with more information when it is available.
This story will be updated.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Western Illinois University closed after officers shot; city to hold press conference
MACOMB, Ill. (WMBD) — Officials in the west-central Illinois city of Macomb will hold a press conference at 10 a.m. to discuss the shooting of two police officers Wednesday night.
Also, Western Illinois University will be closed and not have classes on Thursday due to the shooting. Several streets were also blocked off near the 300 block of Normal Streets where the incident occurred due to a heavy police presence in the area.
The officers, were flown by helicopter to OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center in Peoria and were listed by the Macomb Police Department as being in “critical but stable condition.”
They were shot at about 6:45 p.m. while trying to serve a warrant at a house near the intersection of Normal and Calhoun streets.
Police have said the suspect remains inside of the house where the incident occurred. There is believed to be no threat to the community at this time. However, people are encouraged to avoid the area.
WMBD-TV has a crew on their way to Macomb and will air the press conference live on CIPROUD.com. Stay here for more updates.