Law enforcement personnel gather near the scene where two police officers were shot and wounded in a rural area in Independence, Mo., Thursday, Feb. 29, 2014. Independence Police Department spokesperson Officer Jack Taylor said the two officers were taken to a hospital, and their conditions were not immediately known. One person was arrested, he said. (AP Photo/Heather Hollingsworth)
INDEPENDENCE, Mo. (AP) – Two police officers and a court employee were shot and wounded Thursday while serving an eviction at a home in Independence, Missouri, authorities said.
Independence Police Department spokesperson Officer Jack Taylor said the two officers were taken to a hospital, and their conditions were not immediately known. One person was arrested, he said.
The 16th Judicial Court of Missouri said a court process server also was shot by someone inside the home while serving an eviction notice.
“We are devastated that a court employee, who is a public servant, was shot by a member of the public while performing their job,” Presiding Judge Jalilah Otto said in a statement. “Our hearts are heavy and our thoughts are with our employee, our entire Court family, and the Independence Police Department.”
Taylor said no details are immediately available about what led to the shooting. A news conference is planned for later, he said.
Helicopter video from KMBC-TV showed emergency vehicles converged around an isolated house in the middle of a field. The media was cordoned off in an area about 1 mile (1.61 kilometers) from the crime scene. The area was a mixture of woods and farmland with a smattering of houses on large, multi-acre lots. A church was mixed in among the houses.
Independence is a suburb of Kansas City, with about 122,000 residents.
Capt. Ronda Montgomery of the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office said she could confirm that police officers were shot, but that she couldn’t comment further. She said it’s under the jurisdiction of the Independence police and that it’s their scene.
Schools in the Fort Osage School District were locked down for about 20-30 minutes until authorities gave the all-clear, spokesperson Stephanie Smith said.
“The incident occurred several miles from our nearest school, so it really was out of caution,” she said. “Safety is always our first priority for our students.”
