Shootout in Ohio leaves 4 people dead, including a police officer

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Four people are dead, including a police officer, after a shootout in a northern Ohio neighborhood on Sunday, July 5, law enforcement said.Two other law enforcement officers and a police K-9 were also injured during the incident in Rittman, a city in Wayne County about 20 miles southwest of Akron.During a news conference where the shooting took place, Wayne County Sheriff Thomas Ballinger said that about 9:30 p.m., officers responded to a 911 call for a report of shots fired.Officers responded to the scene and "immediately started taking fire," Ballinger told reporters."At this time, we lost an officer in the line of duty, and two other ones have been injured," the sheriff told reporters Sunday night, adding a police K-9 from the Wayne County Sheriff's Office was also hurt in the melee.The shooting suspect and two other victims also died in the shooting, Ballinger said.As of Monday, July 6, law enforcement had not released the names of those killed and a motive in the shooting was not immediately known.Police cruisers left riddled with bulletsAccording to the Canton Repository, part of the USA TODAY Network, officers from multiple law enforcement agencies responded to the scene near Cheyenne Drive.Several law enforcement vehicles, including cruisers from the sheriff’s office and the Rittman, Wooster and Smithville police departments, appeared to have bullet damage, according to local TV station News 5 Cleveland.USA TODAY has reached out to the Rittman Police Department, as well as the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the lead agency handling the investigation.Multiple local and state officials expressed condolences for the officer killed, as well as the other victims."Our hearts go out to the Rittman community this morning as they mourn a Rittman officer who was killed responding to a 911 call last night," Akron Mayor Shammas Malik wrote in a post on X. "We're thinking of the loved ones of the victims, the Rittman Police Department, and the entire Wayne County community as they deal with this tragedy.""Sending prayers to our brothers and sisters in Wayne County," the Fraternal Police of Order of Ohio wrote in a post on Facebook.Contributing: The Columbus Dispatch, part of the USA TODAY Network.Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.