Suspect shot, in custody after shooting of Chicago police officer in West Englewood

Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson speaks to the media Saturday after a police officer is critically wounded. Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who went to Christ Hospital and Medical Center in Oak Lawn to meet with the officer’s family, looks on. Kevin Tanaka/For the Sun-Times | Sun-Times Media

Michael Blackman, 45, allegedly shot an officer Saturday after police tried to arrest him in connection with the shooting of a 29-year-old woman in the Fulton River District earlier in the week.

After a daylong manhunt in West Englewood, officers shot and arrested a man suspected of shooting a Chicago police officer Saturday in the South Side neighborhood.

The suspect was shot about 3:35 p.m. following an “armed encounter” with officers near the intersection of 64^th Street and Bell Avenue, Chicago police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said in a tweet. No officers were injured in that encounter.

The suspect is believed to be 45-year-old Michael Blackman, who was wanted for shooting a 29-year-old woman Wednesday while riding a bike through the Fulton River District, Guglielmi said. His condition was not immediately known.

At about 8:40 a.m., the Chicago Police Department’s Fugitive Apprehension Unit arrived at a home near the intersection of 65th Street and Winchester Avenue to arrest Blackman in connection with that shooting, Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said.

Once officers knocked on the door, Blackman ran out the back of the home and shot the officer in the groin and leg, causing the officer to lose substantial amounts of blood, Johnson said. The officers returned gunfire, but it was unknown if the suspect had been shot.

The wounded officer applied a tourniquet to his leg while other officers placed him in a squad car. An ambulance picked him up at the corner of 87th Street and Winchester Avenue minutes later and took him to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Chicago fire officials said.

Johnson said the officer is 40 years old and a 16-year Chicago Police veteran in the fugitive apprehension team.

Chicago police

Blackman has an extensive arrest history going back to 1991, Johnson said. His charges include burglary, battery, domestic battery, criminal trespassing, disorderly conduct, driving on a suspended license, and criminal possession of a controlled substance.

“We are actively deploying all available resources to locate the offender,” Johnson said.

Jane Kayle Lee, a trauma surgeon at Christ Medical Center, said the officer arrived in critical condition.

“He came basically bleeding to death. He had already lost a significant amount of blood and was taken ... to the operating room for surgery,” Kayle Lee said.

She said medical personnel started blood transfusions and then took him to the emergency room, where surgeons found a bullet wound to his groin and two bullet holes in his lower left leg.

Medical staff treated the officer’s injuries and he was moved to the intensive care unit, where his condition stabilized, Kayle Lee said. He was expected to make a full recovery.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot arrived at the hospital about 11:15 a.m. and went straight upstairs to meet with the officer’s family.

Afterward, she spoke with reporters to thank the officers in the fugitive apprehension team as well as Christ Medical Center staff who helped treat the officer.

“This morning, we were reminded of the sacrifice our officers make every day to protect the residents in the city of Chicago,” Lightfoot said.

SWAT teams, U.S. Marshals and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were all involved in the search.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.