Jocquise Timmons, 28, charged in shooting of New Jersey state trooper after arrest in South Carolina
NEWARK, N.J. -- The New Jersey state trooper who was injured in a shooting early Thursday is out of the hospital, and the suspect is under arrest.
Officials say their first priority was capturing this alleged shooter, and it took coordination from multiple agencies across different states to track him down.
"Since those shots rang out, there has been investigators across all spectrums of law enforcement that have not gone home," New Jersey State Police Col. Patrick Callahan said.
Authorities say work by several agencies led to the arrest of Jocquise Timmons in South Carolina.
"Thursday's shooting is a chilling reminder of the very real risks faced daily by the women and men of law enforcement," New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin said.
Early Thursday morning, two state troopers were in unmarked patrol vehicles, investigating an attempted break-in at a home hours earlier near East 26th Street and Ninth Avenue. They say the 28-year-old was one of the suspects seen on surveillance video and was believed to be involved.
"A figure, later identified as Timmons, stepping out from behind a parked vehicle, assuming a shooting stance and opening fire on troopers' vehicles as they attempted to follow a vehicle believed to be involved in the attempted break-in," Platkin said.
Only one of the troopers was hit; he was struck in the leg and used a tourniquet to stop the bleeding before two other troopers rushed him to Saint Joseph's Regional Medical Center, where he underwent surgery. He was released early Friday.
"It's not fair that our police officers, every day, every night, being condemned for protecting our communities," Paterson Councilman Luis Velez said.
The extradition process has begun for Timmons, who is facing two counts of attempted murder, aggravated assault and other charges.
The trooper, whose name is not being released for his safety, is now home and already looking forward to getting back to work.
"This trooper was shot on the job. Just hours earlier, he was sitting on his hospital bed, and the only thing he wanted to talk to me about was how he could save more lives," Platkin said.
Authorities believe Timmons was the only shooter. The Attorney General says this is still an active investigation.