The death of Detroit Police officer Loren Courts has shaken the city to its core.<\/p>\n
His family is heartbroken, unsure how to move on without him. The police department, equally devastated, vowed\u00a0to never forget the fallen officer\u00a0\u2014 a loyal friend and partner.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe should all be outraged,” police Chief James White said. “This is unacceptable. \u2026 We are devastated, but we are not defeated. We will not give up.\u201d<\/p>\n
The suspect, 19-year-old Ehmani Davis, was shot and killed by another officer\u00a0after mortally wounding Courts outside an apartment building on the city’s west side.<\/p>\n Authorities had sought an\u00a0assault with intent to murder\u00a0warrant for Davis from\u00a0the Macomb County Prosecutor\u2019s Office on\u00a0June 21\u00a0\u2014 15\u00a0days prior to the Wednesday shooting.<\/p>\n More:<\/strong>Republican Legislature asks court to reverse injunction in Planned Parenthood lawsuit<\/a><\/p>\n\n More:<\/strong>Slain Detroit police officer’s parents: Loren Courts was a hero, family man<\/a><\/p>\n More:<\/strong>Wife of fatally shot Detroit Police Officer Loren Courts: I’m ‘completely heartbroken’<\/a><\/p>\n The timing raises the possibility that the incident\u00a0could have been prevented, and Davis could have been behind bars on the night of the shooting.\u00a0<\/p>\n Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido said his office agreed to authorize weapons-related charges against Davis after a June 9 shooting in Eastpointe, but the charges were being processed and had not been presented to a judge.<\/p>\n He said no one was shot in the incident, and no assault charges were authorized against Davis as the evidence didn’t lend itself to that charge at that time.<\/p>\n Lucido said his office received warrant requests June 21 or June 22 and it has an average turnaround time for review of seven to 10 business days, not including weekends or holidays, such as the recent Fourth of July holiday. He noted police did not ask to expedite the charges.<\/p>\n “We started something now where, once we get a victim of a shooting or a perpetrator of a shooting, we look at ‘should they even be out?’ ” Chief White said.\u00a0“Should they be out, should they be incarcerated right now? Oftentimes, we find they’re awaiting their court date on a serious felony.”<\/p>\n Prior to Wednesday, Davis\u00a0pleaded\u00a0guilty to a misdemeanor weapons charge and was sentenced to a year of probation, which ended in March,\u00a0court records show.\u00a0He had a pending misdemeanor disturbing the peace case from May and was scheduled for a pretrial hearing\u00a0July 8, according to\u00a0Eastpointe district\u00a0court records.<\/p>\n Courts and his partner, Amanda Hudgens, responded to a call about shots fired at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night. They arrived at the scene near Joy Road and Marlowe Street\u00a0at 7:40. Before Courts could step out of the car, he was shot at from an apartment.<\/p>\n They were ambushed, White said, and they never stood a chance.<\/p>\n Hudgens kept her hands on his wound, maintaining constant pressure in an attempt to save him, even as the shooter approached her from behind with his assault-style rifle.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hudgens was prepared to die to try to save her partner, White said.\u00a0Another responding\u00a0officer was able to shoot back.<\/p>\n “She’s a hero,”\u00a0he said of her bravery.\u00a0 “She\u2019s beyond a hero.”<\/p>\n And she’s not the only one\u00a0\u2014 Courts is leaving behind a legacy as a hero, White said.<\/p>\n Courts, 40, had been a police officer for five years, and his father is a retired Detroit police officer. He’s a father to two children.<\/p>\n At a Thursday news briefing, White declined to discuss Davis. He wanted to focus on Courts and the service he provided to his community.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n “(Courts is) without a doubt a hero,” White said. “We\u00a0spend too much time talking about non-heroes, like this murderer who killed this officer. We will never forget him, his service to this community and we will continue to enforce the law in his honor.”<\/p>\n Even as Courts’ fellow officers are grieving, they are still serving the public, White noted. At Wednesday’s gunfight, after giving medical aid to the officer, they turned to the man who shot at them\u00a0and also tried to save his life.<\/p>\n\n From family and friends to fellow officers to state officials, heartfelt condolences poured\u00a0in throughout the day.<\/p>\n Courts’ wife, Kristine Courts, posted a heartbreaking message<\/a> on Facebook early Thursday.\u00a0<\/p>\n To her kids, he was Batman. He was so much more than just a police officer, she said, he was an amazing dad and best friend.\u00a0<\/p>\n “I can\u2019t begin to imagine how we are going to live without him.\u00a0My babies need him. I need him.\u00a0I keep thinking I\u2019m going to wake up from this nightmare and he\u2019s going to come home.<\/p>\n “(We) will never be the same. I already miss his hugs, his voice, his jokes, and his smile with those eyes. Rest In Peace daddy, we will never stop loving you.”<\/p>\n Larry Courts, Loren Courts’ dad, is a retired sergeant of the Detroit Police Department.\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/07\/07\/PDTF\/328e0964-4077-47ef-acfb-b35b8a40c09d-07072022_dpdpresser-1.jpg?crop=2399,1350,x0,y122&width=660&height=372&format=pjpg&auto=webp\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Debra](\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/07\/07\/PDTF\/e1c9768b-aaf1-4bfb-a749-a8385bd31239-DetroitCopKilled_0707223_1.jpg?width=660&height=479&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp\")
<\/figure>\n![\"Detroit](\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/07\/07\/PDTF\/9619b3f5-ede5-4289-91e3-f5cee2290113-07072022_dpdpresser-3.jpg?width=660&height=441&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp\")
<\/figure>\nHeroes<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/presto\/2022\/07\/07\/PDTF\/4227e369-21ac-47d9-b9a2-bed0d81b96c6-DetroitCopKilled_070722_ES1_2.jpg?width=660&height=505&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp\")
<\/figure>\nA community in mourning<\/strong><\/h2>\n