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Man arrested, charged with shooting DC Police officer

The officer shot is now out of the hospital and recovering.

WASHINGTON — Police arrested a 28-year-old man Tuesday in connection to a shooting that left a D.C. police officer injured Sunday evening. 

According to Metropolitan Police Chief Robert Contee, Davon Easton has been arrested and charged with assault with intent to kill while armed, assaulting a law enforcement officer, felony while armed and unlawful possession of a firearm. He was previously wanted on a Felon in Possession Gun charge, according to two sources directly familiar with the case. 

The shooting happened around 9 p.m. near the 1300 block of Spring Road. 

According to documents from the D.C. Superior Court, four uniformed cops were driving an unmarked Metropolitan Police Department vehicle. While driving along the 1400 block of Quincy Street Northwest, the officers noticed a man—identified in the documents as Easton—behaving suspiciously.

One officer recounted to investigators that Easton "had a visible reaction to police presence before walking away from them," court documents say. The officers decided to turn around to make contact with Easton, but they did not immediately see him again. 

The documents say the officers turned east onto the 1300 block of Spring Road Northwest when they noticed Easton heading eastbound.

Contee said when officers tried to make contact, Easton pulled out a firearm and fired multiple shots. One of the officers was injured but didn't immediately realize it, according to court documents. Easton was seen by officers entering an apartment building. Court documents say by around 9:15 p.m. officers barricaded the building.

One of the officers pursuing Easton realized he was hit by a bullet and was bleeding from the head, documents say. The officer was taken to the hospital and treated for "a graze wound to his forehead and a graze wound to his left finger," documents say. He was released from the hospital within hours.

After the shooting, other responding officers chased the shooter to the 1400 block of Quincy Street. Contee said D.C. cops did not return fire to the shooter. The area was barricaded with a large police presence and SWAT team for several hours.  But MPD tweeted several hours later that the barricade situation had ended, and no arrests were made. 

“I feel grateful and fortunate that our officer is home and recovering well from his injuries," said Contee. “But this is a very real example of the dangers our officers face when they are serving and protecting in Washington, D.C.”

The shooting is still under investigation and anyone with information about this incident should call MPD at 202-727-9099.

Easton made an initial appearance in court Wednesday, where D.C. Superior Court Magistrate Judge Errol Arthur ordered that he be held without bond. 

He is scheduled to appear in court again on Feb. 7.

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