Police Chief Reacts To Latest Shooting

RAPID CITY, SD - Tuesday morning's police shooting in Rapid City is a stark reminder of the risks that come with law enforcement.

"It sure makes it easier to deal with this morning when it's him instead of us. And if somebody is going to have to go down in this gun battle, I'm glad it was him instead of one of our guys," Rapid City Police Chief Steve Allender said.

It's a scenario that seems to be playing out more and more as of late. And it's a trend that Allender finds unsettling.

"I think that we're at four or possibly five police officers murdered in the country already this year. In the last 10 days, there's been dozens of police shootings across the country. These types of incidents keep happening and there's some folks that are quick to say that it's a war on the police or that it's an epidemic, or this or that, but all I can say about it is that it's disturbing," Allender said.

Even though the incident left a suspect in critical condition with two gunshot wounds, Allender is thankful that the situation didn't end worse.

"It sounds morbid to say, but this is the right outcome. If a gun has to come out and there has to be a gunfight at the end of an ordeal like this, this is the right outcome," Allender said.

The officers involved in the shooting are Senior Officer Sean Doyle, Officer Michael Frybarger and Highway Patrol Trooper Robert Rybak. They will be on administrative leave for at least the next 48 hours.

The last police-involved shooting in Rapid City happened on August 2 and ended with the deaths of two police officers, the suspect and left a third officer with serious injuries.