Officer, Suspect Hospitalized in Exchange of Shots

A Los Angeles police officer and a drug suspect were wounded in an exchange of gunfire Wednesday night as officers attempted to serve a search warrant at a suspected “rock house,” authorities said.

Officer Perry Moore, 40, a 17-year veteran, was shot in the stomach just below his bulletproof vest as he entered an apartment in the 1400 block of South Sycamore Avenue shortly after 7 p.m., said Chief Daryl F. Gates, who went to the scene.

A second officer fired back, wounding the man who had shot his partner, Gates said. Two men, two women and a child were in the apartment, the chief said. None of the occupants was immediately identified.

The officer and the suspect were taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where the officer is listed in stable condition, Gates said. The suspect was in critical condition and undergoing surgery, authorities said.

Gates said some narcotics were found in the apartment, but he would not elaborate.