Hero deputy shot through the jaw in Los Angeles ambush is a rookie officer and a former librarian



The father of the hero Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputy — identified as Claudia Apolinar — is speaking out on his daughter's condition.

A gunman opened fire on Apolinar and her 24-year-old colleague in an ambush-style attack on Saturday. Apolinar was able to place a tourniquet on the other officer following the attack and also radioed for help.

The suspect is still at large, and authorities are offering $200,000 for information connected to the shooting.

What are the details?

According to the Daily Mail, Apolinar, 31, is a rookie police officer who graduated from the police academy in 2019. Prior to becoming an officer of the law, the mother of a 6-year-old child was a librarian.

Her father, Adolfo, told the outlet that his daughter is in stable condition following an emergency surgery.

In addition to being shot in the face, Apolinar was shot several times in her upper torso.

"By the grace of God, they're both going to pull through," he said. "They're obviously pretty injured and it's going to be life-altering, but they're in stable condition."

Adolfo also lauded the bravery of his daughter and the other officer.

"They didn't give up, they didn't cower down," he told the outlet. "They got out and took care of each other, took cover, made sure it wasn't an active shooter situation. You've got to praise them for their courage and ability to fight for their lives and everybody else's lives."

He detailed the moments following the abrupt shooting.

"It's an extreme situation," he described. "She was shot in the face, shot in the upper torso several times. To have the wherewithal to get yourself out of the vehicle and the line of fire in case it continues, but then to take care of your partner, initiate radio traffic, make sure the civilians in the area are safe, it shows a lot about her courage and intestinal fortitude."

First responders arrived on the scene and transported both officers to a nearby hospital following the attack.

Shortly thereafter, Black Lives Matter activists reportedly converged on the hospital, blocking entrances and demanding that the officers be left to die. Several protesters were arrested during the fracas.

President Trump on shooter who ambushed two LA deputies: 'He's an animal; he's not a human being.'



President Donald Trump called the shooter who ambushed two Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies while they were sitting in their squad car over the weekend an "animal."

What are the details?

"Now you saw a video of that animal that went up to the car — did everybody see that?" Trump asked during his Las Vegas rally Sunday. "This animal, this animal goes up to the car — two unsuspecting fine people ... fine people. I mean, they are in very grave condition, as you know. Fine people. He's an animal. And I called him an animal, and I was criticized by people for calling him an animal. They said, 'He's a human being.' He's not a human being. He's an animal; he's not a human being."

“He's not a human being. He's an animal." Trump absolutely tears into the perpetrator who shot the two sheriffs d… https://t.co/FF00DgxvxI
— Ian Miles Cheong (@Ian Miles Cheong)1600069572.0

Reacting early Sunday morning to video of the shooting, Trump tweeted that the shooter and others like the shooter are "animals that must be hit hard!"

Animals that must be hit hard! https://t.co/zrOd9ZUl8o
— Donald J. Trump (@Donald J. Trump)1599973541.0

As you can probably imagine, some commenters criticized Trump for his tweet. Bishop Talbert Swan — who last month lamented that the "Grim Reaper" took the "wrong Trump" after the president's brother Robert died — tweeted photos of accused Kenosha shooter Kyle Richardson and asked Trump, "What about this animal? You defended him."

In 2018, Trump called murderous MS-13 gang members "animals," after which House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) scolded the president for denying the "spark of divinity" in each person.

What else did Trump say?

At his Sunday rally, Trump also said Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden "wants to appease domestic terrorists, and my plan is to arrest domestic terrorists, OK?" While the crowd cheered and chanted "USA! USA!" the president added, "We also believe that if you murder a police officer, you should receive the death penalty."

Anything else?

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Office is offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the shooter who ambushed the two deputies. The suspect is described as a black male between 28 and 30 years old. He was wearing dark clothing.

The two deputies — a 24-year-old male and a 31-year-old female who has a 6-year-old child — were rushed to a hospital in critical condition. Both of their conditions have been since upgraded to stable, which Sheriff Alex Villanueva described as a "miracle" since both were shot in the head.

Outside the hospital's entrance, video showed one protester tell law enforcement officers standing guard, "I hope they f***ing die." Another video showed the officers standing guard being told that "you're next" and "y'all gonna die one by one."

Sheriff Villanueva tweeted his thanks to Trump and Biden for reaching out with "kind words regarding the horrific ambush which our two brave deputies survived last night," KCBS-TV reported.

"Thank you for setting partisanship aside and showing your support for the LASD and all law enforcement across the County of L.A.," Villanueva said, according to the station.

Graphic photo taken in moment following shooting of 2 LA officers shows deputy shot through the jaw saving fellow cop with tourniquet and radioing for help



Two Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies shot in a Saturday night ambush attack are expected to survive, according to reports.

KTTV-TV investigative reporter Bill Melugin shared a photo of the moment following the shooting of the officers on Saturday, revealing that a female deputy — who was shot through the jaw — was able to apply a tourniquet to the male deputy's wounds and radio for help, despite being grievously injured.

The female officer, according to CNN, is a 31-year-old mother. The male officer is just 24 years old.

What's a brief history here?

The horrific ambush of two deputies took place in Los Angeles on Saturday evening.

A suspect fired on the deputies in an apparently unprovoked attack as they sat in a police cruiser on a Los Angeles street, authorities say.

Both were "severely wounded" during the incident and taken to a nearby hospital for emergency surgery. They are expected to live, despite their injuries.

Black Lives Matter activists reportedly converged on the hospital, blocking entrances and demanding that the officers be left to die. Several protesters were arrested during the fracas.

What are the details?

Melugin, with the permission of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and the officers' families, shared the photo Sunday night on Twitter.

He wrote, "NEW: LASD & the families of the two ambushed deputies have given me permission to show this graphic photo of the moment after they were shot. I'm told female deputy was shot through jaw, still radioed for help & applied tourniquet to male deputy's wounds. Both stable now."

NEW: LASD & the families of the two ambushed deputies have given me permission to show this graphic photo of the mo… https://t.co/KsV8WE9q8m
— Bill Melugin (@Bill Melugin)1600050149.0

What else?

A manhunt is under way for a suspect who approached the officers' parked patrol vehicle and fired on the deputies sitting inside.

Officials are offering a $100,000 reward for information on the shooting.

The sheriff's department describes the suspect as a black man between 28 and 30 years old wearing dark clothing. He was last seen in a dark sedan.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Setif Capelton, who lives in the neighborhood in which the officers were shot, said that the attack "makes no sense."

"It hurts this community more than anything else," Capelton said. "Now, what if someone walks up to a police officer's car, and they get scared and shoot that person?"

Capelton said, "People are looking for someone to blame for racism. People are looking to blame a cop."

Local resident Maria Medina added, "It feels like there's more tension between the police and people in this area."

Of the shooting, Medina added, "[N]o one deserves to have their lives taken like that."

Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said the shooting was disturbing.

"That was a cowardly act," he said. "The two deputies were just doing their jobs, minding their own business and watching for the safety of the people on the train. Seeing somebody walk up and just start shooting on them. It p***es me off."

You can see the moment the suspect approaches the police cruiser and opens fire on its occupants below.

(Content warning: graphic footage):

Update: The gunman walked up on the deputies and opened fire without warning or provocation. https://t.co/cBQjyKkoxJ
— LA County Sheriffs (@LA County Sheriffs)1599969574.0