PARKER, Colo. -- The Douglas County Sheriff is asking the community for prayers after a deputy was shot in the line of duty. Detective Dan Brite, who has been with the department since April 2014, and who was in critical condition, was moved to ICU Friday night.
Police responded to a suicidal suspect's home Friday afternoon, but the incident didn't end there. The suspect was later shot and killed.
Douglas County Sheriff Tony Spurlock confirmed the suspect fired off shots at two locations in Parker, the first at Sierra Vista where the gunman lived, the second near Lifetime Fitness.
Witness Shawn Rubadue was driving near the suspect's white camper when crashed by the second scene. He said the gunman opened fire after he crashed.
"I’m looking right at him, he pulls out his gun and as people are running over, [he] opens fire," said Rubadue.
Douglas County Sheriff's Office officials said four schools implemented emergency protocols as soon as police received reports of a man with a gun.
Sierra Middle School, Pine Lane Primary, Pine Lane Intermediate and American Academy Parker all went into a lockout. None of the schools were involved in the incident, allowing the lockouts to be lifted as soon after the situation was resolved.
Witnesses on the scene near Sierra Middle School said a complex incident unfolded in Parker, leading to an exchange of gunfire between deputies and a gunman in two locations.
The Douglas County Sheriff spoke during a press briefing Friday evening and explained how a deputy returned fire.
"It may have appeared that there were civilians out here but they were our detectives... they were in plain clothes," said Spurlock. "It was a police officer that engaged him [the suspect] at this location."
Spurlock said his main concern is on his deputy who at about 4:00 p.m. was rushed to a hospital to undergo surgery.
"Right now our biggest concern is one of my deputies. We want to be sure this deputy comes out of this surgery okay," Spurlock said. "He's in really good hands. I ask the community to stop and say a prayer for him if they would be so kind. He's going to need every bit of that."
The Sheriff's Office is investigating both scenes and trying to understand why the gunman opened fire.
"We've got a lot of work left to do," Spurlock said.
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