Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 4018 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: JULY 2016 counseling in 2012 after he was charged in an as- sault his father said was a schizophrenic episode, court records show. Ian MacPherson, 32, is the man that shot two cops. He’s plead not guilty to two counts of attempted capital murder in the shoot- ings of Manchester police officers Ryan Hardy and Matthew O’Connor. A police affidavit released indicates MacPherson went through a background check before purchasing the gun he allegedly used to shoot the two officers – despite the shooter’s diagnosis. One of the problems with situations like this is that emotions naturally run high when someone tries to kill law enforcement officers for any reason. The inclination is to some- times reject the idea that mental illness is a factor because that seems like mak- ing excuses for the would-be cop killer. The problem with that is it can turn into a self fulfill- ing prophecy where the police community becomes hostile to the idea that men- tal illness and cop killings can have a connection and that means that polic- ing and mental illness might not get the at- tention required to keep more cops from being shot or killed by individuals suffering from various disor- ders. “He’s been suffer- ing mental illness is- sues for a long, long time,” Russell MacPherson told reporters about his son in an interview. Hardy, 27, and O’Connor, 28, both appeared in court at MacPherson’s arraignment. O’Connor, who was shot in the leg, entered the court- room on crutches. Hardy had been shot in the face and torso. They were joined in the courtroom by dozens of fel- low police officers. “It’s just important that each officer knows that they’re supported by one another,” Manchester Police Chief Nick Willard said after the arraignment. “The outpouring of sup- port is just amazing, it’s just one of those things that you wish you could capture it, bottle it, and keep it for- ever.” In this case, like many others, a failure of the public health system nearly cost two officers their lives. The police affidavit says MacPherson had to wait to purchase a gun in March while po- lice conducted a background check. Under federal law, someone who has been involun- tarily committed to a mental health facility or declared mentally ill by a judge cannot legally buy a gun. But since MacPherson was merely ordered to at- tend counseling, there was no reason that he should not be sold a firearm. The shooter’s father feels awful about what hap- pened. “I’m sorry to begin with that these officers were in- jured,” the elder MacPher- son told the TV station. “I know they have a very hard and thankless job, but I am even more sorry if it was my “I’m sorry to begin with that these officers were injured. I know they have a very hard and thankless job, but I am even more sorry if it was my son that did this.” son that did this.” From an officer safety perspective, doing some- thing about the fact that so many individuals aren’t getting the medication and treatment that they need is increasingly important as more Americans will likely have less access to meds and treatment and increased ac- cess to firearms. Continued from page one This just in... Editor’s note: As the ar- ticle above was being worked on, another shooting involving a suspected men- tally ill man and police offi- cers unfolded in Houston. The man who opened fire in an auto shop was an Army veteran who served four tours in Afghanistan, Houston police have deter- mined. The shooter’s father told KPRC News, “I strongly suspect, I really believe this is a PTSD thing.’’ Friends of the gunman told reporters the same thing. Two people died, includ- ing the shooter, as he and police exchanged fire. A regular customer of the shop sustained the other fatal injury. Two other men and a woman were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries and the two officers were treated for less serious injuries. Local news reports indicated that the shooter was armed with a high-pow- ered rifle and at some point used it to fire on police heli- copters. As we went to press, police have yet to confirm those reports. Mental illness threat 2016InternationalPoliceWorkDog Training/CertificationConference Visitourwebsite www.ipwda.org forinformationandregistration. WEHOPETOSEEYOUTHERE! Train,certify,networkandenjoythe beautytheSmokieshavetooffer. Come join us in the beautiful SMOKY MOUNTAINS in Sevier Co. Tennessee Make it a family event!!