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Special Ops Trooper Shot, Alleged Gunman Killed

NEW BEDFORD – A State Police special operations trooper was shot, and the alleged gunman was killed, during a heavy exchange of gunfire in a drug raid at the break of dawn yesterday. A mother and her developmentally disabled child were inside the house where the shooting erupted.

The trooper, who was not identified, was not seriously injured, and officials said his body armor might have saved his life. Officials said troopers fired back and killed the gunman after they came under fire.

The 6 a.m. shooting occurred on Shawmut Avenue during the execution of a search warrant at a multifamily home as part of an investigation into drug dealing. The alleged gunman was identified last night as Thomas Garnett, a 32-year-old carpenter and the father of the disabled boy. The boy and mother were apparently on the second floor at the time of the shooting and were not injured.

Neighbors seemed alarmed both by the predawn shooting and the fact that Garnett was the target of a drug investigation.

“They’re family-oriented people, and I’m having a hard time believing this,’’ said Judith McMullen, the property manager. She said she has heard no complaints of drug dealing.

“I don’t really understand what happened,’’ McMullen said. “It doesn’t seem likely. Maybe I’m missing a piece.’’

Yesterday afternoon, detectives assigned to the Bristol district attorney’s office, who were investigating the drug dealing, searched Garnett’s white Ford truck.

Officials said they had information leading them to believe he might have been armed, necessitating the special operations response during execution of the search warrant. Officials did not say yesterday whether drugs were confiscated, though at least two guns were found.

Bristol District Attorney C. Samuel Sutter said the shooting shows the need for toughened gun laws, particularly laws that allow for the immediate detention of a defendant found to have a gun.

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