SALEM, Ore. — A patrol officer was wounded and a suspect was killed in an exchange of gunfire Thursday morning, according to the Salem Police Department.
Police said a vehicle crashed just before 10 a.m. at 17th Street NE and Center Street NE and the driver ran from the scene.
The officer ran after the driver and they confronted each other in the back yard of a home on Court Street NE. Shots were fired and initial reports from Salem police said the officer was hit in the ankle. The suspect was also shot and was pronounced dead at the scene.
On Oct. 31 Oregon State Police identified the man who shot the officer as 30-year-old Rodolfo Martinez-Cortez, of Salem.
The officer, later identified as Officer Andrew Parsons, was put on administrative leave which is standard protocol. Parsons has been a Salem police officer since February of 2020. Parsons was treated for a grazing gunshot wound to his leg and released, according to OSP.
Police temporarily closed 17th Street NE between Chemeketa and State streets, and Court Street NE between 17th and 14th streets while they investigate the shooting.
