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The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Source:  Fox News

Posted: Tuesday, January 01, 2019 02:22 PM

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Three South Carolina Officers Dead After "Ambush" Shooting Wednesday

A South Carolina sheriff's detective has died after a man, who was wanted for assaulting his wife, "ambushed" and shot him and three other officers, officials said Wednesday. 

York County Detective Michael Doty died Wednesday after he was shot by Christian Thomas McCall, 47, during an hours-long manhunt Tuesday morning.

"It is with a heavy heart & great sadness that York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson announces the passing of Detective Michael R. Doty," the sheriff's office wrote on Facebook. Doty spent 12 years working for the department.

SWAT team members Sgt. Randy Clinton and Sgt. Buddy Brown are in stable condition, and Sgt. Kyle Cummings, also of SWAT, is still recovering from his wounds. A K-9 officer was also injured in the attack.

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Sgt. Randy Clinton, Sgt. Buddy Brown and Sgt. Kyle Cummings were wounded early Tuesday morning in York, S.C. when a gunman "ambushed" them.  (York County Sheriff's Office)

The officers were called to McCall's house, outside of York, around 10:20 p.m. Monday night after he attacked his wife, authorities said. McCall ran into the woods and deputies spent about three hours searching for him. York is about 25 miles southwest of Charlotte.

Clinton has been with the department for 34 years, WSOC-TV reported. Brown has been with the force for 13 years, and Cummings has been on the force for three years.

McCall, a father of three children who was shot during a gunfight with officers, remained in the same Charlotte, North Carolina hospital Wednesday where the four officers were also taken.

Cars are parked at a home in York, S.C. on Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018, where multiple deputies responding to a domestic violence call were shot and wounded. State Law Enforcement Division spokesman Thom Berry said Christian Thomas McCall is the man officers think shot and wounded the officers early Tuesday. (AP Photo/Jeffrey S. Collins)

Police were called to McCall's home for a report about a domestic disturbance.  (AP)

He was charged with three counts of attempted murder for the three officers who were less seriously wounded. The prosecutor was waiting to charge McCall for Doty's injuries. Based on what happened to Doty's medical condition the proescutor would then decide what to charge McCall with in the shooting.

McCall’s father-in-law told WSOC-TV on Tuesday that it was “uncharacteristic” for his son-in-law to act violently toward police, and didn't know of past violence between his daughter and McCall.

But details about McCall’s history included one arrest in February 1994, when he was charged with assaulting a law officer, resisting arrest and simple assault. It’s unclear what happened in the case.

Deputies were also called to the two-story home in 2015 when McCall was the victim of an alleged domestic disturbance. Details from that incident were not released.

Roger Gilfillan, a neighbor, said Tuesday morning’s incident was “baffling” and called the McCalls “real nice people.”

 

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