Deputy Killed, 2 More Injured in Colorado Shootout

Deputies were serving an eviction notice
By Michael Harthorne,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 24, 2016 2:33 PM CST
Deputy Killed, 2 More Injured in Colorado Shootout
   (Shutterstock)

One sheriff's deputy was killed and two others were injured during a shooting in the "picturesque town" of Bailey, Colorado, on Wednesday morning, the AP reports. The suspect was also killed by deputies returning fire, the Denver Channel reports. One of the deputies who was shot has life-threatening injuries, according to the Denver Post. 9News identified the deceased deputy as Nate Carrigan, who had been with the Park County Sheriff's Office for 12 years.

A Colorado Bureau of Investigation spokesperson says the resident of the home, Martin Wirth, was armed with a rifle and attacked the deputies. The Post says Wirth was an Occupy Denver activist who faced foreclosure after defaulting on the house in 2013, and notes that the Colorado Foreclosure Resistance Coalition had called for a "non-violent eviction resistance" for Wirth, who "has been an invaluable part of Occupy Denver from the very early days." Wirth also ran for Colorado senate in 2014—the same year Fannie Mae took control of his home—as a member of the Green Party, losing to a Republican incumbent. (More shooting stories.)

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