Tuscaloosa Police Dept.(TUSCALOOSA, Ala.) — A veteran police officer was shot and killed in the line of duty in Alabama Monday night, leaving behind two daughters and his fiancé.
“The ultimate sacrifice of Officer Dornell Cousette will never be forgotten,” Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said.
Officer Dornell Cousette, a 13-year-veteran of the Tuscaloosa Police Department, was shot while exchanging gunfire with a suspect inside a house in Tuscaloosa, about 57 miles southwest of Birmingham, authorities said.
The suspect, who was wanted on warrants for previous felony offenses, was also shot and was taken to a hospital for treatment, according to Tuscaloosa’s interim police chief, Mitt Tubbs.
Cousette was the father of two daughters and was engaged to be married, according to Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox.
“In our community, our heroes wear the police uniform of the Tuscaloosa Police Department,” Maddox said at a press conference. “And tonight, one of our heroes has died in the line of duty, protecting our city,”
“He was a great officer,” the interim police chief told reporters. “Everybody loved him.”
“Officer Cousette laid down his life in service to the people of Tuscaloosa,” Gov. Ivey said in a statement on Tuesday.
“We cannot take for granted the tremendous sacrifices our men and women in law enforcement make each and every day in order to keep us safe,” Ivey said. “Because of Officer Cousette’s brave call to action, the felon he pursued now remains in custody.”
“Our deepest prayers remain with Officer Cousette’s two children, his fiancé, the Tuscaloosa Police Department, the city of Tuscaloosa and all of our brave men and women who put their lives on the line to ensure the protection of our communities,” she said.
Cousette, the first Tuscaloosa officer to be killed in the line of duty since 2011, was also the fourth law enforcement officer to die in the state this year in “a senseless act of violence,” said the governor.
Ivey has ordered that flags be flown at half-staff across the state.
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