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A Mahnomen County sheriff's deputy was in
critical condition Wednesday after being shot several times in an
incident that sparked a nine-hour standoff with police and locked
down an area in this northwestern Minnesota town.


      The standoff ended peacefully about 4 p.m. when the second of
two suspects walked out of a mobile home and surrendered to
authorities. Another person had been taken into custody earlier in
the day, said Dave Bjerga, assistant superintendent of the
Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

      Mahnomen County Sheriff's Deputy Christopher Dewey remained in
critical, but stable condition at MeritCare Hospital in Fargo,
N.D., Wednesday evening. The 26-year-old had two surgeries - after
being shot in the abdomen and the head.

      MeritCare officials said in a statement that the head wound
resulted in a severe brain injury, and it was too soon to know a
prognosis. Hospital officials said doctors were able to repair a
laceration to Dewey's liver.

      Sheriff Doug Krier told reporters the incident started around 4
a.m. when authorities got a call about a drunken driver leaving the
Shooting Star Casino in Mahnomen. Deputies found the vehicle near
the courthouse with no one in it.


      About 6:20 a.m., the sheriff said, neighbors reported shots were
fired in that general area.

      "The deputies responded and checked the area but couldn't find
anything," Krier said. He said that about 7:10 a.m., Dewey went to
a house to interview a witness about the gunfire.

      "At about 7:11 his backup called to find out his status and how
he was doing. He did not answer his radio," Krier said.

      The backup deputy arrived to find his partner lying on the
driveway of the home he was going to check.

      "The deputy had been shot multiple times," the sheriff said.
"The suspects then ran into a residence across the street."

      The standoff outside that doublewide mobile home lasted nine
hours. Several law enforcement agencies descended on the scene,
including tactical teams from the BCA and surrounding law
enforcement agencies. The BCA also sent its Crime Scene Team and
some investigators.

      The Mahnomen public school, a few blocks from the shooting, was
locked down as a precaution, Superintendent Walt Aanenson said.
Once the standoff ended, the students were being bused home. About
600 students attend the school.

      Mahnomen is about 60 miles northeast of Fargo.

      Krier said Dewey has been with the sheriff's department for four
years.

Gallery

Crime, Law and Justice

A Mahnomen County sheriff's deputy was in
critical condition Wednesday after being shot several times in an
incident that sparked a nine-hour standoff with police and locked
down an area in this northwestern Minnesota town.


Standoff over in Mahnomen; deputy still critical

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