By Dawn Krebs
dkrebs@hometownnewsol.com
PORT ST. LUCIE - Port St. Lucie Police, responding to a call concerning a suicidal man, soon found themselves involved in a shootout that left one officer injured and the man dead.
According to reports, on Nov. 3 police responded to a home on Peru Street in Port St. Lucie, where the parents of 42-year-old Daniel Ross Fuller live.
The report said Mr. Fuller was armed with a handgun and told his parents he was going to kill himself.
When they told him they had called the police, Mr. Fuller reportedly responded by saying, "Good, I'll shoot them, too."
Police arriving on the scene were unable to make contact with Mr. Fuller and the SWAT team was called.
After numerous attempts to contact Mr. Fuller, police spotted him in the backyard with a handgun, which he pointed at the officers, resulting in the officers taking defensive measures.
Mr. Fuller received multiple gunshot wounds and was transported to St. Lucie Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. A loaded handgun and magazine was recovered from the body.
K-9 Officer Al Corona, who has been with the department since 2000, was shot in the arm during the event and has since been released from the hospital.
Currently, Officer Corona has not yet returned to duty.
"He can't work due to his injury," said Master Sgt. Frank Sabol, public information officer for the police department. "He's still recovering."
The shooting is the first of its kind this year and only the fourth since the police department was formed.
"The incident is still under investigation," said Master Sgt. Sabol. "The state's attorney's office is assisting in the investigation."