Gunman Kills 3 Police Officers

First Oakland, now Pittsburgh—the recent increase of violence against police officers is alarming. Three officers were killed by a gunman “lying in wait” today while on response to a domestic disturbance call in a relatively quiet neighborhood in Pittsburgh. The suspect, 23-year-old Richard Poplawski, was wearing a bulletproof vest when he met the officers at the door and shot them immediately in the head. The Associated Press reports that friends claim Poplawski recently lost his job and feared that President Obama would take away his right to own a weapon. One of the slain officers, Eric Kelly, was a veteran of the force for 14 years, and Stephen Mayhle and Paul Sciullo III were each a part of the force for two years. Poplawski remains unharmed because of the vest and is charged with three counts of homicide, aggravated assault, and a weapons violation.