CANONSBURG, Pennsylvania -- A Canonsburg police officer was shot to death and another wounded when they were ambushed while answering a domestic call early this morning in the Washington County borough.
About six hours later, police found a man and a woman dead inside a house at 120 Woodcrest Drive, according to authorities. It was unclear if one of them was the shooter; their identities have not been released. Post-Gazette news partner KDKA-TV reported that one is the shooting suspect and the other a pregnant relative.
State police Trooper Melinda Bonderanka said the officers responded to a call of a domestic disturbance at 3:14 a.m. at a duplex in the 100 block of Woodcrest Drive and were ”ambushed upon their arrival.”
Both officers were transported to Canonsburg Hospital, where 52-year-old Scott Leslie Bashioum later died of his wounds, according to county coroner Tim Warco. Officer Bashioum was pronounced dead at 4:10 a.m.
The surviving officer was later flown to Allegheny General Hospital for treatment in its trauma unit, according to hospital spokesman Dan Laurent. Officials have not yet released the identity or condition of the injured officer.
Judy Nemeth, director of victim services and public information for the county district attorney's office, said about 8:30 a.m. that one officer remained in surgery.
Lisa Stout-Bashioum, the daughter of J. Barry Stout, the late state senator from Washington County, said Officer Bashioum was her husband's cousin.
"I just want to extend my sincere sympathy and prayers to Scott's family," Ms. Stout-Bashioum said this morning.
District Judge David Mark, of Canonsburg, said he knew Officer Bashioum and his family well.
“He is a great guy, top to bottom. One of the best people I know inside and out,” District Judge Mark said. “I can’t imagine what the family is going through.”
Starting around 9:40 a.m., police cruisers formed a procession to escort Officer Bashioum’s body from Canonsburg Hospital.
A makeshift memorial has been growing in front of the Canonsburg municipal building at 68 E. Pike St. as members of the community stopped by with flowers, balloons, stuffed animals, and a Bible.
"It shouldn't have happened here," said Becky Travaglini of Canonsburg. She didn't know either of the officers who were shot today but aid that her heart is broken for them and their families. She was a waitress at a local restaurant for 17 years and saw many local officers come out for breakfast.
Earlier this morning, homes in the Woodcrest Drive area were evacuated and all other residents in the surrounding area were told to “stay inside” while the search for the suspect continued in the area Bluff and West Pike streets. Police, firefighters and the Washington County sheriff's office had blocked off a stretch of road near the intersection of Bluff Avenue and West Pike Street. Also, a command post had been set up on nearby West College Street.
Residents were allowed back in their homes by 10 a.m. and police cleared the scene near Bluff and West Pike around 11, but remained on Woodcrest where police have taped off the area surrounding some houses.
The borough municipal building also had been shut down for a while.
Departments on the scene included Peters, North Strabane, Hanover, state police and others.
Canon-McMillan School District cancelled classes for today and Chartiers-Houston School District instituted a two-hour delay because of the shooting.
Keith Jacob, of 126 Woodcrest Drive, said he lives two doors down from where the shooting took place and heard gunshots this morning.
"That’s what woke me up. Then I thought I heard someone say ‘My partner’s down’, " he said.
He said the couple who live at the house where the shooting occurred have had past domestic problems.
“She has had a [protection from abuse order] against him ... there have been back and forth disputes going on,” said Mr. Jacob, who also said the woman was pregnant.
Richard Crothers, 48, who lives on West Pike Street, said he heard sirens about 3:30 a.m. He thought he saw an ambulance followed by two police cars "and then all hell broke loose."
"This here is just unbelievable," he said, noting that there are rarely police on the street, except to pull over speeders who use it as a pass through to Cecil when they get off Interstate 79.
Police were on his street all morning. He watched shortly before 8 a.m. as a SWAT truck and then a bomb squad unit pulled in.
"This is the craziest it's been," he said.
He said police didn't tell him what's been going on but did tell him to stay inside for a long stretch.
Copyright 2016 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Tribune News Service
