HALPHEN TAKES DRUG TEST IN WAKE OF SHOOTING OF SUSPECT

Halphen joins other officers in wake of Thursday's shooting.

Bossier City Police Chief Mike Halphen was the first officer to confront the
shooting suspect whom three officers later opened fire on Thursday near a
busy intersection.

The three officers, whose names are being withheld, were tested for drugs
and alcohol and placed on paid administrative leave pending an internal
investigation.

Halphen also was tested but returned to the office Friday, doing business as
usual, Bossier City spokesman Mark Natale said.

All personnel involved in accidents or incidents that result in injuries to
themselves or another person shall undergo a drug test, according to Police
Department policy. The officers who returned fire Thursday fit that criteria
because they were involved in an incident in which a suspect was wounded.
Since Halphen did not return fire, department policy does not require him to
undergo a drug test, Natale said. But the police chief took it upon himself
to be tested since the other officers were tested and to clear up any
misconceptions, Natale said.

"The determination to place department personnel on paid administrative
leave following a police-involved shooting is made by the chief of police,"
Natale said. "Placing personnel on administrative leave in these cases is
designed not as a disciplinary measure but to give the officers time off to
recover from a traumatic event. It is a way to ensure the personnel are OK
and fit to return to duty."

Halphen determined he didn't need to be placed on leave and was fit to
return to duty. "It's his call to make as chief. If he felt like he needed
the time off, he would have placed himself on administrative leave," Natale
said. Deputy Police Chief Dale Teutsch would be in command of the department
if Halphen placed himself on paid administrative leave, Natale said.

Policies across the river are about the same. Shreveport police officers,
including the police chief, are mandated to be on paid administrative leave
only if they are involved in a shooting. Those not directly involved can
request leave, Shreveport Police Chief Mike Campbell said.

Individual positions make a difference when making such decisions. A police
chief isn't a regular patrol officer. In Halphen's situation, he happened to
run across a suspect while in the area. Friday, he returned to the
administrative area. But when the other officers return to work, they likely
will go back to patrol, Campbell said.

"If I had been in the exact same situation, I wouldn't be on paid
administrative leave unless I requested," Campbell said.

The fact that Halphen was tested for alcohol and other drugs is what
Campbell described as precautionary measures. "We do that when we are
involved in accidents to make sure we are not under the influence of alcohol
or narcotics," he said. "That's a public trust issue and a liability issue.
It's just a safety issue.

Willie Ford, the suspect, remained in critical condition Friday in LSU
Hospital in Shreveport, according to hospital officials. The 18-year-old
Bossier City resident was shot one shot once in the hand and once in the
front side of his body when he exchanged gunfire with the officers in a
parking lot near Benton Road at East Texas Street.

Halphen was in the area when he spotted an individual riding a bicycle that
fit the description of a suspect in an earlier shooting. He called for the
suspect to stop in the Kroger parking lot. The man got off the bicycle,
started walking away from Halphen then pulled a handgun and fired at the
police chief. Several officers arrived, then Ford and the officers exchanged
gunfire.

Halphen, who was not wearing a bullet-proof vest, did not fire his gun
because several bystanders were behind the suspect as he fired at the police
chief, Natale said. But Natale believes the situation apparently changed by
the time other officers arrived.

"We are looking at what point the officers shot the suspect," he said. "All
indications are that there were no bystanders near the suspect when the
officers opened fire. I don't know the movement of the suspect, but I think
he was moving around in the parking lot."

No officers were wounded. A woman outside a store across the street was
grazed by a bullet. A bullet also shattered a rear window on a passing van.

Ford faces three counts of attempted first-degree murder for opening fire on
the police chief and two officers. Police still haven't determined whose
bullet hit the van or the woman, Natale said. Ford could face additional
charges pending the police's findings.

Ford had run-ins with police prior to Thursday's incident, but nothing
major. Police arrested him in March 2003 on a charge of simple battery
following a confrontation with a girlfriend, Natale said. Police came in
contact with Ford at least one other time while he was a juvenile, but
Natale wouldn't comment on the matter because of the man's age at the time
of the incident.