Police director Toney Armstrong stood outside of the Regional Medical Center at Memphis late Saturday afternoon and once again asked for prayers.
For the second time in as many months, one of his officers had been shot on the job.
Sgt. Norman Benjamin, an officer with 14 years in the department, was shot in the abdomen at 12:45 p.m. and was in stable but critical condition after surgery in the Elvis Presley Memorial Trauma Center at The Med.
Benjamin, 47, was stabilized at about 4 p.m., but the triggerman, described as a man with a dark complexion and long black hair, clothed in a black cut-off T-shirt and dark pants, was still on the loose late Saturday.
Benjamin's wounding comes two months to the day after the fatal shooting of Memphis officer Timothy Warren, who was gunned down responding to a call in a Downtown hotel.
"We ask for your continued prayers," Armstrong said from The Med. "For him, for his family."
The shooting occurred in the 4700 block of Summer, at a shopping center near Summer's intersection with Avon Road, between North Perkins and North Mendenhall.
Benjamin, who works in the vehicle-theft unit, was on duty in his white, unmarked Dodge Charger when he was approached by the dark-complected man and a "struggle ensued," Armstrong said.
During the encounter, the gunman fired at least one shot that struck Benjamin in the abdomen. He fled before officers responding to the shooting call arrived at the scene.
"A lot of things are not clear to us...," said Armstrong.
"Until we are able to interview (Benjamin), we won't know what exactly went down."
Benjamin's car sat in the shopping center parking lot with the driver's-side door open Saturday while officers appeared to be searching the area north of the incident. Employees of a nearby Mexican restaurant and other businesses within the center stood outside watching the activity.
As to what events led up to the shooting, "the exact circumstances we do not know now," MPD spokeswoman Karen Rudolph said at the scene.
Information was not available about a vehicle the gunman was believed to be in after the shooting, Rudolph said.
At The Med, Benjamin's family members were gathered inside on the second floor, in the critical care waiting area. Outside, dozens of police officers and a handful of reporters were a scene unto themselves.
Memphis Mayor A C Wharton stopped by, offering brief remarks, before Armstrong gave a final update on Benjamin's condition. By 5 p.m., the commotion had dissipated, though the search for the shooting suspect continued.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
