Attleboro Police Shooting: Officers Dodge Bullets, Save Suspect

ATTLEBORO, MA — A man who fired "dozens" of shots at police Monday morning was saved by the very officers he opened fire at, Attleboro's mayor said.

Around 7 a.m., police encountered a man who had reportedly entered a nearby church with a gun. The suspect allegedly unleashed a barrage of gunfire on officers, who returned fire and struck the suspect multiple times.

The officers, who were not physically harmed, quickly tended to the man who allegedly just took aim at them.

"They basically wounded him to the point where if they had not administered first aid with a tourniquet, it would have been critical," Attleboro Mayor Paul Heroux told Patch.

Officials said bullets were found in their cruiser's windshield and one of the headrests. Heroux was not sure what kind of firearm he was using.

The officers were treated for stress-related issues at a hospital, Attleboro Police Chief Kyle Heagney said.

The suspect, identified Monday afternoon as Eric Lindsey, 41, of Coventry, R.I., underwent surgery at Rhode Island Hospital. Heroux said he was suffering from complications.

No other injuries were reported.

Lindsey will be charged with two counts of firearm-armed assault to murder, four counts of attempted assault and battery with a firearm, four counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, three counts of possessing a large capacity feeding device, and one count each of breaking and entering, unlawful possession of a large capacity firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building, carrying an illegal firearm and carrying a loaded illegal firearm.

Lindsey was reportedly a fugitive wanted in Rhode Island on an attempted murder charge.

Police encountered Lindsey after he was reported with a gun at an Assembly of God church on Newport Ave. The pastor, who was the only one in the church at the time, reportedly spoke with Lindsey before police arrived.

One officer was already out of the cruiser when Lindsey started shooting, and the other dove out during the gunfire, police said.

Police are not sure why Lindsey was at the church.

The officers involved were described as "rookies" - one had just graduated from the academy last August. Heroux was impressed by their poise and quick thinking, knowing how close his community came to tragedies that have become all too common across Massachusetts this year.

"It's almost like a textbook response to how to handle these situations," Heroux said.

Two police officers have been fatally shot in Massachusetts this year. Two more were struck with gunfire last month in Falmouth.

Read: 'No Call Is Routine'

Photo by Jared Pelletier, NBC10, used with permission