NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- A man who had been pointing a gun at people in New Orleans' historic French Quarter was critically wounded Saturday in a shootout with police.
New Orleans Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson said officers responded to reports of an armed man near St. Louis and Bourbon streets around 7:30 a.m. Saturday. When they arrived, an "exchange of gunfire" began and the armed man was hit in the chest. He is being treated at University Medical Center, Ferguson said.
No officers were injured.
It's unclear who fired first, the suspect or the officers.
Four officers who responded -- including the three who fired their weapons -- have been reassigned, a standard practice for officer-involved shootings, Ferguson said. The officers will be placed on desk duty while the department's Force Investigation Team reviews body-camera and surveillance footage to determine whether their decision to fire was justified. Other agencies from the city's Independent Police Monitor to the FBI will also track the investigation, Ferguson said.
"It's an unfortunate incident when officers have to resort to using their weapons," Ferguson said. "We're praying for the family of this individual and our officers."
Neither the names of the officers involved nor the suspect's were immediately released.