There was another shooting in Burlington involving a man shot in the chest at an apartment building — the victim is in stable condition and the suspect is in custody.

Quick actions by both the police and fire departments may have saved the victim’s life.

Another shooting in Burlington

The latest shooting in Burlington occurred at an apartment complex called Salmon Run, off of Riverside Avenue.  This and more was discussed on “The Morning Drive” radio show based in Burlington on Monday morning.

“We believe that there were a few people present in the apartment — one individual shot another individual in the chest, a third individual called the police, a woman, it was her husband who had been shot in the chest, she called the police, police responded, the suspect was no longer on the scene,” Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad said.

Officers at the scene performed a “chest seal” on the wound that may have saved the man’s life. The fire department also played a critical role.

A suspect in custody

Murad said that after reaching out to other personnel, police were able to locate and apprehend the main suspect. The chief said the suspect is being held with at least $50,000 bail set.

“This is a person who has been known to us from previous law enforcement engagements,” Murad said.

When a caller later in the show inquired that there may not be serious enough consequences for repeat offenders of certain types of crimes, the chief noted that he and the mayor have advocated for “the creation of a felony statute for our existing reckless endangerment statute” which may deter crimes.

Addressing controversy concerning overtime policy

The department had been criticized for allowing officers to take contracts working security for a condominium association. Murad said extra contracts such as these are not unusual, but what made this one stand out was that it was not for a specific event, but was a monthly contract for ongoing protection.

“This part of the city, this condominium association, and a large number of neighbors that live in it have expressed an ongoing sense of disorder and concerns about crimes that were happening,” Murad said.

The chief noted that the residents were not feeling safe in their residence. The City Council has taken a lot of criticism for rising crime in the city since it defunded the local police department by 30% back in the summer of 2020.

“They came to the police department about that,” Murad said. “There were meetings with members of that homeowner’s association and members of city government and the police department. Those meetings were all about a sense of concern and fear and of that crime and disorder.”

Such contracts will not continue for now

For the time being, the chief has stated such contracts involving long-term overtime commitments will not continue.

Murad explained that these types of overtime services are done with officers in uniform and sometimes with official police cruisers. He added that a portion of the money for such services does go to the city, and if an urgent matter occurs elsewhere in the city then that officer is expected to leave promptly and attend to the new emergency.

Murad added that for these types of extra work to continue, the union is going to have to work something out with the Burlington Police Department in their next contract. Normally only specific events — not month-long security contracts — are standard for such overtime work.

“Ultimately they engaged with the Burlington Police Officers’ Association which is the union that represents Burlington police officers for what we call an extra-duty detail,” Murad said.

Michael Bielawski is a reporter for True North. Send him news tips at bielawski82@yahoo.com and follow him on Twitter @TrueNorthMikeB.