Investigating a fatal police attack requires careful firearms forensics

Channel 9 got new insight into the extensive investigation underway as law enforcement seeks answers to last week’s ambush attack.

Channel 9 veteran crime reporter Glenn Counts spoke to a firearms expert about what a case of this magnitude might look like for those who need to know exactly what happened on Galway Drive.

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Part of the extensive investigation involves clarifying all shots fired by law enforcement.

The tragic loss of four officers in East Charlotte could be one of the largest investigations in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police history.

“Especially in a case of this magnitude, I can’t even imagine how much evidence they collected at a crime scene like this,” said Stephanie Walcott, a firearms expert.

Walcott is an assistant professor of forensic science at Virginia Commonwealth University. Previously, she served as a firearms and toolmark examiner at the State Bureau of Investigation Crime Lab.

Walcott’s job was to match the bullets to the weapons that fired them.

“For our purposes, this identification is as reliable as a suspect’s fingerprint,” she said.

The process is laborious and requires examining the balls under a microscope. It will be an important part of the Galway Drive investigation, she said.

“The more complicated part of a police shooting is that they all carry the same make and model of gun, which means the marks that those weapons leave behind are going to be similar to each other,” Walcott said.

CMPD said at least 12 officers returned fire. The suspect was also armed with weapons similar to those used by the officers.

“The next step now is I have to test all the weapons, so they would have to test every firearm that was there that could possibly have been fired,” Walcott said.

CMPD has its own firearms and tool tag division, and Walcott said the analysis takes time, so the public should be patient.

“As much as people are frustrated by how long it takes to get results, it’s a good sign if it takes a long time because it means that laboratory analyzes are giving the evidence the attention it deserves to ensure that they are correct conclusions,” Walcott said.

The process is lengthy and thorough.

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Walcott said that once the process is complete, another reviewer will review the work again and there will be another review process before the results are published.

Two other people were at that home on Galway Drive during the shooting.

A woman and a young girl were questioned by police and released.

CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings said the two were tested for gun residue on their hands and were awaiting the results of that test.

VIDEO: 4 officers killed, 4 injured in East Charlotte standoff