Gunman Kills 3 Pittsburgh Police Officers

(CBS/AP)  A man opened fire on officers during a domestic disturbance call Saturday morning, killing three of them, a police official said.

Neighbors described how a quiet street in the city's Stanton Heights neighborhood turned into a battlefield with hundreds of rounds cracking through the morning air and fallen police officers lying bleeding in the street, their colleagues unable to reach them.

Police Chief Nate Harper says the motive for Saturday's shooting isn't clear. Friends say the gunman recently had been upset about losing his job and that he feared the Obama administration was poised to ban guns.

The three dead officers are Eric Kelly, Stephen Mayhle and Paul Sciullo III. Kelly had been on the force for 14 years and the other two only two years each. Another officer was shot in the hand and a fifth broke his leg on a fence.

The gunman, 23-year-old Richard Poplawski, was arrested after a four-hour standoff.

One witness reported hearing hundreds of shots, reports CBS Station KDKA in Pittsburgh.

The shooting occurred just two weeks after four police officers were fatally shot March 21 in Oakland, Calif., in the deadliest day for U.S. law enforcement since Sept. 11, 2001. The officers were the first Pittsburgh city officers to die in the line of duty in 18 years.

It also came less than day after a gunman went on a rampage at an immigrant center in Binghamton, N.Y., killing 14 people including himself.

Neighbors said the shooting began at about 7 a.m. and that two officers were shot almost immediately.

"When I looked down I saw two police officers laying in the street," said Don Sand, who lives across the street and was awoken by the sound of gunfire.

A short time later, more officers, SWAT teams and other law enforcement arrived and a third officer was shot, Sand said.

"They couldn't get the scene secure enough to get to them. They were just lying there bleeding," Sand said. "By the time they secured the scene enough to get to them it was way too late."

Gail Moschetti, who lives diagonally across the street from the Poplawski house, said she heard hundreds of shots as she and her husband took refuge in their basement. Tom Moffitt, 51, a city firefighter who lives two blocks away, said he came to the scene and heard "hundreds, just hundreds of shots."

Below, Pittsburgh Police Chief Nate Harper talks about the shooting.

Local Video from KDKA in Pittsburgh

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Edward Perkovic said Poplawski, his best friend, feared "the Obama gun ban that's on the way" and "didn't like our rights being infringed upon." Another longtime friend, Aaron Vire, said Poplawski feared that President Barack Obama was going to take away his rights, though he said he "wasn't violently against Obama."

Perkovic, 22, said he got a call at work from him in which he said, "Eddie, I am going to die today. ... Tell your family I love them and I love you."

Perkovic said: "I heard gunshots and he hung up. ... He sounded like he was in pain, like he got shot."

Vire, 23, said Poplawski once had an Internet talk show but that it wasn't successful. Vire said Poplawski had an AK-47 rifle and several powerful handguns, including a .357 Magnum.

Another friend, Joe DiMarco, said Poplawski had been laid off from his job at a glass factory earlier this year. DiMarco said he didn't know the name of the company, but knew his friend had been upset about losing his job.

The last Pittsburgh police officers killed in the line of duty were Officers Thomas L. Herron and Joseph J. Grill, according to a Web site that tracks police killings. They died after their patrol car collided with another vehicle while chasing a stolen car on March 6, 1991.

According to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, 133 law enforcement officers died in the line of duty in 2008, a 27 percent decrease from year before and the lowest annual total since 1960.

Poplawski had often fought with neighbors and had even gotten into fistfights with a couple, Sand said.

"This is a relatively really quiet neighborhood except for him," Sand said. "He was just one of those kids that we knew to stay clear from."

Rob Gift, 45, who lives a block away, said the well-kept single-family houses with manicured lawns are home to many police officers, firefighters, paramedics and other city workers.

"It's just a very quiet neighborhood," Gift said.

Both Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato and Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. released statements offering condolences to the slain officers' families and the broader community, KDKA reported.

"County police and crime lab staff have been working throughout the day with the city police, and we will continue to provide support and assistance as long as needed," Onorato wrote.

[KYTAK]

Instead of having a trial and sending this idiot to jail for Life (even if he gets the death penalty, the last time PA executed someone was ten years ago) and costing taxpayers approximately $24,000 a year, have him walk down the streets of downtown Pittsburgh and everyone can throw rocks at him and shoot him with a BBgun until he falls over in pain. Then police officers can kick him until he gets off his ^%& and stands up and then everyone can continue to throw objects at him--torture him for a few hours and then ensure that he dies. I am sick of hearing "he deserves a fair trail" WHY? He is obviously guilty, does not feel remorse so why waste anyone's time and tax dollars to defend him. Torture him now.

[kw14]

As a wife of a police officer, my prayers go out to the wives, children and family of those police officers. It is my worst nightmare to get that phone call or to see the news of my husband hurt/killed at work.

[sean1z]

Pittsburgh is a beautiful city. This deranged murderer belongs in a state prison for the rest of his life. The killings of three Police Officers allows narcotics traffickers and smut dealers open access to the streets. The latest technology for surveillance will change things on Felons operating there. Pittsburgh needs technical assistance to eliminate the dangerous criminal element.

[weaner1]

666: What were they doing on that street? They just randomly chose that house. Read the article. His Mommy called the police because they were fighting and she wanted him out. She neglected to tell them that she raised a goof that collected guns for the upcoming revolution. I'm not always a big fan of the cops but they should have taken this kid out. Firing an AK into houses all around his because he's a weak ass follower who believes everything he reads on the internet should be grounds enough to be terminated. Let alone the cops he picked off at the door. Apparently he walked out and gave one of the officers a few more pops to ensure he was dead. Now we in Pennsylvania will get to support his waste of a life in prison for 20 years. Talk about why Pro-Choice is so important.

[bigmo47]

This has nothing to do with gun control or the NRA. Yeah, I believe that the gun lobbyists are all about money so they really don't care who dies. They will make concessions, like the 7 day waiting period. After the 1st seven days, profits resume as normal. Also, gun control only affects people who obtain their weapons legally more than likely for lawful purposes. The only way this a-s-s clown could have gotten a legal AK 47 was if he were a former memer of the soviet army. Now he's blaming it on President Obama, saying he was scared he was going to take away the right to bear arms. Yeah way to show them that Americans are responsible enough to own guns. It's funny how people will champion the little things the government does in collusion with the lobbyists like the 7 day waiting period. Like if someone was going to commit murder they wouldn't steal the murder weapon or buy it illegally. That's like saying I wouldn't have stolen his car if he had locked the doors. "I'll commit felony car theft, but if they tack on that misdemeanor B&E that's out of my league". Come on!!!

[erasmus111]

Not hardley, he got out of law enforcement like I did because he got tired of dealing with STUPID civilians like you. You have no knowledge of what a LEO goes through on a day to day basis. The sad thing is YOU don't care.

Posted by 1American at 6:22 AM : Apr 6, 2009

Well of course I care. I'm a Canadian, not an American. I have great respect for cops. I wouldn't want their job for anything. Especially an American cop.

And when I said that, I was just joking with mecanik.

But I do have a question for you. You had to know how many stupid civilians were out there, so why did you take the job? Stupid?

[sean1z]

Hey 666, save your paranoid schizophrenia. Take your thorazine and haldol, then read a newspaper.

[ThisIsTheEndd]

Enough is enough. If you use a gun to kill anyone-especially Police Officers you should expect no quarter. Just think-we could balance the budget by not having to pay for trials that last forever and the criminals live in prison for many years after the crime before they are put to death.
Posted by Raleigh
***********************
I agree. Might have to be up to each individual state to pass a law making execution mandatory. Also to make the execution completed within one year of the sentence. Most importantly we need to make the executions public and exciting. Something fun like hanging or a guillotine.

[sean1z]

Pittsburgh should receive homeland security grants to improve police technology. Dangerous Felons must be foiled before committing acts of violence. A simple warning would had saved lives. Barack Obama could approve more funding to Pennsylvania for the safety and security of the Commonwealth. Law Enforcement Officers and Civilians must be protected from psychotic killers.

[ThisIsTheEndd]

Most neighborhoods have a bad apple that everyone else would prefer not to deal with. When one finally goes on a rampage, everyone else is wishing the guy has been neutralized a while back. I'm surprised this shooter was taken alive. Would make a good candidate for execution by guillotine.