UPDATE: Suspect in stable condition following police-action shooting

Thursday, April 4, 2019

LADOGA — Police attempting to serve a felony warrant Wednesday night shot a suspect who reportedly fired at the officers.

The suspect, 39-year-old Matthew G. Olsen of Roachdale, was taken to Eskanazi Hospital in Indianapolis. He was listed in serious condition upon transport, which had been upgraded to stable as of Thursday evening.

Indiana State Police from the Lafayette Post reported the shooting early Thursday morning, having been called in by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department to investigate the police-action shooting.

Officers from the Montgomery County Multi-Jurisdictional SWAT Team arrived at Olsen’s residence 10:06 p.m. to execute the warrant. Although listed as a Roachdale address, Olsen’s home is on the north side of County Road 1200 South, which is the Montgomery-Putnam county line.

As they attempted to serve the warrant, Olsen allegedly fired at the officers, State Police reported. The officers returned fire, injuring the Olsen.

As the scene was made secured, officers immediately rendered first aid, with Olsen later taken to the hospital.

No officers were injured in the exchange of gunfire.

The investigation is ongoing. The names of the officers involved in the shooting have not been released.

After the investigation is concluded, the report will be turned over to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office.

The investigation is being conducted by ISP detectives, troopers and crime scene investigators from the Lafayette Post.

Comments
View 6 comments
Note: The nature of the Internet makes it impractical for our staff to review every comment. Please note that those who post comments on this website may do so using a screen name, which may or may not reflect a website user's actual name. Readers should be careful not to assign comments to real people who may have names similar to screen names. Refrain from obscenity in your comments, and to keep discussions civil, don't say anything in a way your grandmother would be ashamed to read.
  • *

    Why was SWAT executing warrants? All it says is "felony warrant"... that's a pretty broad brush. If this guy was a danger, why take him in his home where there is likely to be a confrontation? (There is very little information forthcoming from those executing the warrant...which is why I ask the questions.)

    Is it possible that he thought someone was breaking into his house? After all, its 10pm. Banging on the door/breaching and yelling like they do, its reasonable to think that the intruders (in his mind) have nefarious intentions.

    Of course there will be many questions and few answers. We will be told that it was necessary and not to ask questions or worry about it - just trust those with the badge & gun.

    And as recently shown by the Montgomery Co. Prosecutors Office, justice isn't a high priority there... especially when police force is in question.

    Without knowing all the facts, we can only analyze what we do know about this particular situation (which is very little) and how it applies to similar ones in the past. Research how many innocent people have died from police actions such as this...its scary to think that an address mix-up or bad information or over-zealous policing can be a death warrant where those guilty simply walk away, but its all good b/c they have a difficult job and at least they got to go home at end of shift.

    And while I dislike the militarization of the police (who get cool "tactical" cop gear and can't wait to use it), I will not automatically call it a bad shoot.

    But I do have lots of questions... as we all should.

    -- Posted by dreadpirateroberts on Thu, Apr 4, 2019, at 12:21 PM
  • ^ It's always a good idea to discharge a weapon before identifying the target and clearing the background, right? Just because you think someone is breaking into your house doesn't mean it's OK to unload a firearm towards the noise, as you were implying could be the case here.

    -- Posted by Koios on Thu, Apr 4, 2019, at 12:28 PM
  • *

    At 10pm when you are not expecting anyone and someone comes bursting through your door by force, yelling, and with guns pointing at you - how much time do you want to take to ascertain the motives of those breaking into your house? Criminals use this exact maneuver in home invasions, relying on the complicity of their victims by convincing them that it is the police.)

    In my original post I identified the target (intruders) and its kind of a given that you generally know what is beyond your front door.

    I did not imply, in any way, that you should shoot towards a noise. That would be reckless behavior. Maybe you should learn what the word "breach" means. (Cops don't breach doors and then stand there... they enter with force.)

    And while we are at it - to "unload a firearm" is to render it empty of ammunition. The correct verbage would be "fire" or "discharge".

    -- Posted by dreadpirateroberts on Thu, Apr 4, 2019, at 1:15 PM
  • Because the police never announce their presence when attempting to serve a warrant, they just show up unannounced and kick the door in. Ok, I get it now. Hopefully the next time the UPS driver aggressively knocks on your door to signal that he/she left a package he/she leaves alive and in one piece.

    -- Posted by Koios on Thu, Apr 4, 2019, at 3:45 PM
  • *

    In a lot of instances, they announce their presence AS they are breaching the door. (Its a tactic that is designed to confuse/disorient those inside much like flash bang grenades.)

    That you are uninformed/willfully blind to certain realities is obvious. If you want to be snarky and obnoxious as well, simply to be so, go right ahead. Your hoplophobic view of the world is your right. But don't put me in your sheep pen.

    I have owned firearms since I was able to do so. I have carried (licensed) for almost as long. Not once have I mistakenly shot anyone, or even drawn.

    If you want to actually have a discussion on police tactics - then try to at least sound like you know what you are talking about.

    -- Posted by dreadpirateroberts on Mon, Apr 8, 2019, at 9:14 AM
  • I also have owned and used guns for decades, and have concealed carry for 20+ years. Your contention that this guy might have had a legitimate reason for shooting at police is preposterous, at best. First principles in shooting dictate identify your target. If he would have done that he wouldn't have shot. SO we are left with two options, he failed to use proper shooting safety principles, or he did identify the target and shot at police anyhow. Pick your poison, both scenarios display irresponsible behavior with a firearm. Period.

    -- Posted by Koios on Mon, Apr 8, 2019, at 12:37 PM
Respond to this story

Posting a comment requires free registration: