BURTON, MI (WXYZ) — A Burton police officer and a Genessee County Sheriff Deputy are recovering this morning after being shot by a man in his 20's in the city of Burton.
The Burton officer has been identified as Dalton Christie and the Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy as Brandon Fachting.
The Burton police officer is in fair condition, while the Genesee County Deputy is in critical condition. He is expected to survive.
According to Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson, the officer and deputy found the suspect and chased him to a dead-end street.
That's when law enforcement says the suspect started climbing a fence before it collapsed, pinning him.
Officers say when the deputy and officer tried getting the fence off of the suspect, he began shooting at officers.
"Shot's were fired. A Burton officer was shot a Sheriff's Deputy was shot. And the suspect was shot on scene. The suspect died on scene," Swanson said.
Officers on and off duty in surrounding counties responded to the scene. Sheriff Swanson says it was the training that the officers and deputies go through that saved two of their own.
"Because of the quick response of those on the scene from Burton as well as deputy paramedic Sean Clayton and deputy paramedic Dustin Roy. Loaded up both of the wounded police officers and transported them in the back of the patrol car to Hurley Medical Center," he said.
The mayor of Burton added that his officer and the sheriff deputy were doing their job and putting their lives on the line.
"When these men and women put on these uniforms and put the badge on, they do what it takes to protect and serve and that's exactly what happened," Buron Mayor Duane Haskins said.
According to the Mayor's office, officer Dalton Christie has only been with the department for about one year. The last time an officer in Burton was shot, according to the mayor, was in 1983, almost 40 years ago.
This shooting remains under investigation.
