Metro bus driver shot in downtown Seattle; police shoot and injure suspect
8/12/2013SEATTLE — A man suspected of shooting a Metro bus driver today was shot by police as he ran through downtown streets, police said.
Dispatchers received a flood of reports before 9 a.m. that a man had shot the driver on the Route 27 bus near Third Avenue and Seneca street.
Officers spotted the fleeing suspect near Second Avenue and Seneca, where he was shot, police said.
Although the 67-year-old driver was shot multiple times, police said his injuries appeared non-life-threatening.
Police described wounds to the suspect as life-threatening. The man, in his 30s or 40s, was taken to Harborview Medical Center.
In addition, a 32-year-old officer sustained minor injuries, possibly from broken glass. He was treated at the scene, police said.
Streets were closed for the investigation and police said they would remain shut down for at least eight hours, congesting downtown traffic.
Susan McGuire works near the scene. She said she saw the officer shoot the suspect, who was then given CPR and taken to an ambulance.
“It’s sad because I feel sorry for the people on the bus,” she said.
The violence recalled a shooting 15 years ago.
On Nov. 27, 1998, a bus driver was killed when he was shot while driving across the city’s Aurora Bridge. Mark F. McLaughlin, 44, died after the bus smashed through a railing, bounced off an apartment building and crashed into the ground about 50 feet below.
McLaughlin was shot by passenger Silas Cool, 43, who committed suicide. The 33 other passengers were hurt, with one passenger dying the next day.