Kentucky trooper, motorist wounded in gunfire during traffic stop

Published 5:32 am Monday, July 12, 2021

A Kentucky state trooper and a motorist were wounded in an exchange of gunfire during a traffic stop, police said.

The shooting occurred early Saturday in the Knott County community of Carrie, state police Sgt. Billy Gregory said in a news release. Carrie is about 130 miles (209 kilometers) southeast of Lexington.

The trooper was responding to a call of a stolen vehicle from a residence and initiated a traffic stop after seeing the vehicle traveling nearby with one person inside. The motorist fired a gun at the trooper, who then fired his weapon in return. The trooper suffered undisclosed gunshot wounds and was treated at a hospital and released, the statement said.

A second trooper arrived and shot the suspect in another exchange of gunfire. The suspect was in a Lexington hospital’s intensive care unit on Saturday. His condition was not disclosed.

The names of the trooper and the suspect weren’t immediately released. The incident remains under investigation.