Lakewood Police Shooter Dead - Maurice Clemmons Shoot and Killed by Police - Lakewood Police Killer Shot Dead by Police

Maurice Clemmons has been shot by police and is dead. Clemmons is the man who shot and killed 4 Lakewood police officers as they sat in a coffee shop before the start of their shift on Sunday.

The Lakewood police shooter, Maurice Clemmons who has been the subject of a man hunt, was in a house in South Seattle and police shot and killed him as he tried to run away.

Maurice Clemmons family and friends have helped him hide from the police over the past few days. The police have been given fake leads by family members, making the hunt for Clemmons even harder.

The police department started detaining and arresting the family and friends of Clemmons who had helped him hide and get away. This was done to "tighten the noose around him" was what the police spokesman said on Fox News this morning. The fake leads given to the police allowed Clemmons to stay at large for all this time.

Maurice Clemmons walked into a coffee shop on Sunday morning and shot and killed four Lakewood police officers, who were in uniform at the time. He had told friends the night before that he would be in the news the next day, as he planned to do this for some time before the actual shooting.

The shooting was directed at police, and not specific officers. The coffee shop was a well known gathering place for the Lakewood police officers in between shifts. They were there at the same time every day, giving Clemmons the perfect opportunity to carry out this horrific crime.

He had been on the run since the shooting. Clemmons has a long criminal history, and was out on bond at the time of the shooting. He was in prison and awaiting trial for the rape of a child and was let out on bond six days before killing these police officers.

Clemmons was given clemency by then Governor Mike Huckabee in Arkansas eleven years ago. He was in prison on numerous charges at the time and was serving a 60 year term.

By all accounts, Maurice Clemmons should have still been in prison. The prosecutors in Arkansas that took part in Clemmons case protested his clemency grant eleven years ago.

According to the Seattle Times, Larry Jegley, an Arkansas prosecuting attorney commented "This is the day I've been dreading for a long time" when he was told that Clemmons was the suspect in the Lakewood police shooting.

Unfortunately this is another case where senseless killings could have been avoided if the criminal remained behind bars where they belonged.

Reference:
Dan Springer of Fox News reporting this morning from Seattle Washington.

Seattle Times Online