Two Fairfax County, Virginia, police officers were shot Wednesday while conducting a traffic stop, with a third officer fatally shooting the gunman, according to authorities.
Both officers were taken to the hospital with injuries that are not life-threatening, Fairfax County police said in a post on X. The shooting happened in the 4000 block of Majestic Lane near Greenbriar.
The incident started Wednesday afternoon when an officer operating a radar gun in the area clocked a driver speeding and initiated a traffic stop, Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said during a news conference.
The speeding driver then slammed on his brakes, according to Davis, and the officer began to conduct a traffic stop for speeding.
The driver, who was the only person in the car, was immediately hostile, argumentative and combative, Davis said.
“He refuses to identify himself, he refuses to produce any identification whatsoever, he does tell the police officer that he is armed,” Davis said.
Other officers arrived on the scene as the officer who initiated the stop told the driver to stop reaching for his firearm, which was in a holster attached to a gun belt.
Once backup arrived, two officers on the driver side of the stopped vehicle tried to de-escalate and prevent the driver from grabbing his gun. A third officer stood on the passenger side.
Davis said the driver took the gun out of his holster, leaned back and opened fire on the two officers on the driver side, striking them in the arms.
As the driver was opening fire, the officer standing on the passenger side shot him, killing him.
Davis said he viewed body camera footage from all three officers and footage from the dashcam of police cruisers on scene.
“So if I appear to be speaking with a degree of certainty, it’s because I am certain. I’m certain that these officers are lucky to be alive. I’m certain that they were fired upon by a gunman whose intention was to kill them. And I’m certain that the bravery exhibited by the third officer on the scene ultimately saved their lives.”
That body camera footage will be released to the public within 30 days, per county police policy.
The gunman lived “right down the street” from the scene of the shooting, Davis said, and was 36 years old.
Majestic Lane was closed between Route 50 and Meadow Hill Lane for the investigation.
Below is a map of the area where the shooting occurred.
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