KINGS MOUNTAIN, N.C. (AP) - A police officer in North Carolina and a suspect were shot and wounded in an exchange of gunfire on Saturday night, a police official said.
Kings Mountain Police Chief Lisa Proctor said the wounded officer, Cpl. Frank Lee Whittington Jr., was recovering from surgery early Sunday.
“He is thankful for the support, and that he is still alive,” Proctor said. “The outpouring from the community has been overwhelming.”
Proctor said the severity of the wounded suspect’s injuries wasn’t immediately clear, WSOC-TV reported.
Whittington and the unidentified man traded gunfire after the officer responded to a call from a Cleveland County resident who reported seeing a suspicious person on the home’s back porch, according to Proctor.
Whittington is a 13-year veteran of the police department in Kings Mountain, which is about 30 miles west of Charlotte.
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