A close call for the sheriff of Assumption Parish, as he’s shot by a shooting suspect he was confronting. Sheriff’s spokesman Lonny Cavalier says Sheriff Leland Falcon was close to the scene when the call for assistance came down, so he responded and encountered the suspect.
“The sheriff attempted to talk the suspect down. He took his shotgun, raised it and fired a shot at the sheriff, striking him in the left torso,” Cavalier said.
While Sheriff Falcon never fired his weapon, one of his deputies returned fire and hit the suspect. Cavalier says that suspect and the victim of the original shooting that led to the 911 call were taken to hospitals.
“One suspect was flown to Our Lady of the Lake in Baton Rouge with serious life-threatening injuries, and the original victim of the first shooting was transported to a Baton Rouge hospital with moderate injuries,” Cavalier said.
Cavalier says one deputy suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene, while Falcon was grazed by the suspect’s bullet and was briefly hospitalized.
“Sheriff is doing fine. He was discharged from the hospital last night. And if you know Sheriff Falcon, he’ll tell you that this is part of the process,” Cavalier noted.