MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. (WISH) — A LaPorte County deputy is in critical condition after being shot at Franciscan Hospital in Michigan City Friday morning.
Laporte County Sheriff’s Office identified the deputy as Jon Samuelson. He was airlifted to South Bend Memorial Hospital in critical condition.
The suspect, 22-year-old Sharod Grafton Jr. from Chicago, was at LaPorte County jail. He will be moved to Porter County jail.
“Our focus right now is Deputy Samuelson and his family,” Indiana State Police Sgt. Glen Fifield said during a press conference.
According to state police, who is handling the investigation, around 6:45 a.m. Friday, Samuelson stopped what he thought was a disabled vehicle on State Road 2 and County Road 900 West.
The deputy transported Grafton, the vehicle’s sole occupant to Franciscan Hospital at the his request.
At the hospital, the deputy learned Grafton may have been involved in an earlier incident, according to police.
The officer returned inside the hospital where an altercation took place in the emergency room between the Grafton and the deputy.
Grafton shot the deputy during the altercation, police said. He then ran into the woods by the hospital.
Officers quickly located him in the woods and took him into custody. They recovered a handgun.
“This is a senseless shooting that didn’t have to take place,” Fifield said. “This officer thought he was helping a stranded motorist. He thought he was helping someone, and it turns into this.”
Police said they were still in the early stages of the investigations, and many questions were unanswered.
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