Page 35 - June 2017 Newsletter

“We identified ourselves as Police Officers,” Herrera noted. “We ordered, ‘Show me your hands. Show me your hands.’ He turns around and lets two rounds go.”
Those two rounds hit Lagunas in the upper chest and lower chest. But he didn’t realize those shots came any- where near him until paramedics found fragments in his vest when examining him after the incident.
“Two inches higher, and he’s probably not here today,” Herrera exclaimed.
Harris kept firing, and this time a round got under Bra- cho’s vest. He thought he had been hit in the foot because that’s where he felt the pain. But the bullet went through his torso, hit his pelvic bone and caught nerve endings that radiated to his foot.
“Two inches lower and the guy is paralyzed,” Herrera added.
Cantore took cover and hit the ground, where the next round caught him in the ankle. Herrera was able to flank Harris, and he and Lagunas began exchanging fire. Bra- cho was down but also getting rounds on him.
Harris was slumped over in the doorway, down but not out. Eventually, he stumbled out of the doorway, pistol in hand and still firing. According to reports, 33 rounds were exchanged in 44 seconds.
“His intent was to kill an officer that day,” Herrera as- serted. “No doubt in my mind.”
Harris crawled to within 10 feet of Cantore. He had his arms out, reaching for his pistol but Cantore was able to hobble up and get cuffs on Harris before he could fire again. They had him in custody, and it wasn’t until later
that he finally succumbed to his wounds.
But the incident was far from all clear. Bracho had been
hit badly. They rolled him on his stomach and started ap- plying pressure. An ambulance finally arrived to take him to Stroger Hospital. The next ambulance tended to Can- tore, but Lagunas wouldn’t go so easily.
“Finally, we had to rustle him into the ambulance,” Her- rera revealed. “Heroes, I tell you. All of these guys.”
We have become brothers
Beyond surviving, Bracho believes that the most heroic achievement on that March night was that nobody froze. He attributes the action to all four officers having a num- ber of years on the job.
Herrera also offers props to the guys at Near North for bringing in renowned military tactical expert U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Dave Grossman to conduct a training seminar. “It paid big dividends that night,” he relates.
Whether it’s training, experience, instinct, courage or bravery, you can’t keep good men down. In perhaps the greatest testament to the heroics from Detective Bracho and Officers Cantore, Herrera and Lagunas, it didn’t take long for them to get back on the street. Cantore needed the most time to heal and rehab, but he was back to full duty in seven months.
Still, when a 43-time felon is three feet from you, trying to kill you, there must be some lasting sensation reverber- ating through how you go about policing. Bracho related that feeling at the Top Cops presentation. d
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ JUNE 2017 35
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