LITTLE ROCK — Police released the identities Saturday of two Little Rock officers who were wounded and another who took fire but escaped injury serving a no-knock drug warrant Friday morning.
SWAT officer James Jenkins was shot in both legs. Officer Bryan Black broke his arm in a fall during the raid at a second-story apartment at 2200 Marshall St. Another SWAT officer, De Chance Ketzscher, was shot in his bullet-resistant vest.
A number of police officers returned fire, wounding two people including a woman who died Friday night.
A Little Rock man, and repeat drug offender, is charged in the shooting, which was the first time since March 7, 2002, that a Little Rock officer was shot while on duty.
The injured officers were treated and released Friday from Baptist Health Medical Center in Little Rock.
Little Rock police spokesman Lt. Terry Hastings said Saturday that Black and Jenkins would be taking time off to recover. Black joined the force in 2007, Jenkins in 2001.
Ketzscher, a 13-year veteran, was expected to return to his normal work schedule, Hastings said.
None of the officers is on official leave while police conduct an internal investigation, as is procedure when officers discharge their weapons, Hastings said.
Police haven’t yet determined which officers fired the shots that struck Floyd Walton,53, and Irma Rogers, 42.
“We’re still working on that,” Hastings said.
Walton was hit in the leg. Rogers was hit in the head. Both were taken to UAMS Medical Center in Little Rock, where Rogers was pronounced dead at 9:57 p.m. Friday.
Walton was expected to be released into custody Saturday, police said.
Police believe Harry Lee Porter Jr., 33, was the sole gunman who fired on the officers asthey jerked open a steel door at the top of a wooden flight of stairs leading to the apartment about 6:40 a.m.
Jenkins went in first, followed by Ketzscher.
Inside, one of the occupants opened fire on themas they came through the door, shooting Jenkins once in the upper part of each leg. Ketzscher’s vest stopped a bullet from entering his groin, according to a report released Saturday.
Officers returned fire and rushed into the apartment, arresting the occupants, the report said. Seven other officers were fired on, but weren’t injured.
During the exchange which occurred in a matter of seconds, Black fell through the wooden porch railing, breaking his arm after hitting the ground about 10 feet below, the report said.
Police then found Walton and Rogers.
Later Friday, Porter, was arrested on charges of two counts of criminal attempt to commit capital murder and two counts of first-degree battery on a police officer.
Porter had worked as a laborer at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s Little Rock printing plant. His employment ended in January.
Porter denied firing the shots Friday afternoon as he was being led in handcuffs to a police car, saying he had hid in a closet during the shooting.
Police said they found a half-ounce of crack cocaine, a half-ounce of marijuana, hydrocodone pills, electronic scales and three handguns inside the apartment.
Porter, along with Asia Lewis, 21; Nicole Johnson, 39; Melissa Morris, 40; Larry Randall, 56; James Jones, 51; and Tamala Hayman, 45, were charged with possession of cocaine with intent to deliver, possession of marijuana with intent to deliver, possession of hydrocodone with intent to deliver, possession of guns within 1,000 feet of a church, possession of drug paraphernalia, simultaneous possession of guns and drugs, and maintaining drug premises. All live in Little Rock, and all except Lewis are felons, according to an arrest report.
Hayman’s age had earlier been reported as 65 due to a discrepancy on an arrest report.
Walton faces the same charges after he is released from the hospital, according to the report released Saturday.
Friday’s raid was the second no-knock warrant Little Rock police had served at the apartment in seven months.
In September 2009, Porter was arrested after police found an electronic scale in the living room and crack cocaine, a razor blade with cocaine residue, small plastic bags and $161 in the bedroom.
Police believed the drug house used lookouts to warn those inside of law enforcement or intruders, which posed a danger to officers attempting entry, a detective wrote in an affidavit filed in court to justify the warrant.
Neighbors tipped police off in both cases, Hastings said Friday.
Porter is a felon, who has been in and out of custody since he was 17, according to Arkansas Department of Correction records.
Sentenced to 42 months in a prison boot camp in April 1994 for a drug charge, Porter was paroled five months later. He was then arrested asan absconder in January 1995 and sentenced the next month to 36 months on another drug charge.
Released in October 1995, Porter was on parole until February 1998. He went back to prison again later that year on more drug convictions.
He was being held Saturday at the Pulaski County jail. He also faces a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Arkansas, Pages 15 on 03/28/2010