A bulletproof vest is being credited for saving the life of a 41-year-old SWAT officer who was serving a murder warrant in Northeast Philadelphia Wednesday morning.
The suspect died after being shot by police.
The shooting happened about 6 a.m. in the 800 block of Riverside Drive.
According to Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, members of the SWAT Team and homicide division went to a second floor apartment to serve a murder warrant.
When officers entered the residence, Ramsey said the suspect, identified as 27-year-old Devon Guisherd, grabbed what turned out to be a weapon and began to run. At some point, the suspect spun around and opened fire, striking a SWAT Team officer in the bulletproof vest near his stomach.
The officer -- who is a married father of two -- returned fire, fatally striking the suspect.
Guisherd was wanted for the stray bullet shooting death of pregnant mother Megan Doto and her unborn child in Philadelphia in September 2014.
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Ramsey said the officer, who is a 17-year veteran of the force, has a “nasty bruise.” He was treated and released from Aria Health Torresdale Hospital.
According to Ramsey, SWAT Team officers wear an extra level of armor protection and Ramsey credits that for saving the officer’s life.
"If this was a patrol officer we would be having a different discussion," said Ramsey. "Because the bullet was low enough where this particular vest has an extra flap that goes down and that's what caught the round."
This is the second time that the officer was shot in the line of duty, Ramsey said. In 2010 a Kevlar bullet-proof vest took the impact of a bullet fired into his chest during a raid on Sanger Street in the Summerdale section of the city.
The name of the officer will be officially released Friday morning. The officer will return to the force after he undergoes required counseling and feels that he's ready.
The shooting remains under investigation.
