DA’s Office: The Shooting Death Of The Suspect Who Killed Four Law Enforcement Officers On Galway Drive Was Justified

Caryn Little, Emma Mondo,

The Latest:

The Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office has released their final report regarding the deadly ambush that killed four officers in east Charlotte and injured four others.

The DA’s Office says the suspect, Terry Hughes Jr., fired 29 rounds at law enforcement from an elevated position of cover using a Radical Arms RF-15 rifle.

Given the facts, the DA’s Office says there is no question the 23 officers who returned fire during this lengthy encounter did so in defense of themselves and of their fellow officers. This incident signifies the single deadliest assault on law enforcement in our community’s history.

If law enforcement officers had not responded to an imminently deadly threat with lethal force, as difficult as it is to imagine, the outcome could have been even more catastrophic. Accordingly, this review finds that the use of deadly force by law enforcement officers, resulting in the death of Terry Hughes Jr., was justified under the law.

CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings issued the following statement on the DA’s report:

“I appreciate today’s decision by Mecklenburg County District Attorney Spencer Merriweather announcing no findings of wrongdoing in the response of officers to the imminent and deadly threat that occurred during the horrific events of April 29, 2024,” said CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings. “This was the single deadliest attack on law enforcement officers in our city’s history. We lost four heroes that day who displayed the epitome of bravery. We will not forget their ultimate sacrifice for our community’s safety.  I am extremely grateful to the dedicated members of our Homicide Unit, Crime Lab and Crime Scene Investigations as well as the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s Office who have carefully and meticulously reviewed approximately 1,100 videos and examined approximately 10,000 pieces of evidence.”

Click HERE to read the full report from the DA’s Office.

Original Story (Posted: May 6, 2024):

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Eight total law enforcement officers were shot in east Charlotte, according to CMPD. Three U.S. Marshals and one CMPD officer were killed in the shooting. Five other officers were injured.

WATCH THE MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR DEPUTY U.S. MARSHAL THOMAS WEEKS JR. HERE

WATCH THE MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR CMPD OFFICER JOSHUA EYER HERE.

WATCH THE PROCESSION FOR U.S. MARSHAL TASKFORCE MEMBER ALDEN ELLIOTT HERE.

WATCH THE PROCESSION FOR U.S. MARSHAL TASKFORCE MEMBER SAM POLOCHE HERE.

WATCH THE PROCESSION FOR CMPD OFFICER JOSHUA EYER HERE.

WATCH THE PROCESSION FOR DEPUTY U.S. MARSHAL THOMAS WEEKS JR. HERE. 

A news conference held on Tuesday with Gov. Roy Cooper, CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings, Attorney General Josh Stein, Mayor Vi Lyles, U.S. Marshals Service Director Ronald Davis and other local officials provided updates to the ambush that happened on Galway Drive.

Officer Joshua Eyer, a 6 year veteran, was killed in the shooting, according to CMPD Chief Johnny Jennings.

The U.S. Marshals killed in the shooting have been identified as Samuel “Sam” Poloche, William “Alden” Elliott and Thomas Weeks Jr., according to the N.C. Department of Adult Correction.

Officers1Poloche and Elliott were both 14-year NC Department of Adult Correction veterans. They were task force officers assigned to the U.S. Marshals Carolinas Regional Fugitive Task Force. Weeks worked was a deputy marshal for the N.C. Department of Adult Correction.

Poloche joined the NCDAC Special Operations and Intelligence Unit in 2013 and Elliott followed in 2016, each after serving several years as probation/parole officers. They loved their work, and were passionate about their roles in protecting our communities, according to a news release.

Poloche leaves behind a wife and two children, and Elliott and his wife were parents to one child.

Weeks, 48, of Mooresville, North Carolina, was a 13-year veteran of the U.S. Marshals Service, serving in the Western District of North Carolina for the last 10 years.

Thomas Weeks Jr

Weeks started his USMS career in February 2011 in the District of Columbia’s Superior Court, Washington, DC. He transferred in November 2014 to Charlotte, NC. Prior to USMS, he spent eight years with Customs and Border Protection. He leaves behind a wife and four children.

The additional CMPD officers injured in the shooting have been identified as:

Officer Jack Blowers, a one-year veteran of the department, was shot but treated and released from the hospital on Monday.

Officer Michael Giglio, a three-year veteran of the department, was shot but treated and released from the hospital on Monday.

Officer Christopher Tolley, an 18-year veteran of the department, had to undergo surgery for a gunshot wound but is listed in stable condition.

Officer Justin Campbell, a member of the department since 2020, was not shot but broke his foot during the shootout. He was released from the hospital on Tuesday.

Statesville Police Department Cpl. Casey Hoover, an eight-year veteran, who was serving on the task force, was shot and also underwent surgery and is listed in stable condition.

The shooting happened on Galway Drive around 1:30pm in east Charlotte. This is near Milton Road.

WCCB confirmed members of the U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force were attempting to serve a warrant for arrest when the ambush took place. Chief Jennings says more than 100 rounds were fired during the shootout. Twelve CMPD officers were placed on administrative leave for firing their service weapons, which is standard procedure, according to Chief Jennings.

CMPD says the task force, which is comprised of officers from multiple agencies, was attempting to serve the warrant on 39-year-old Terry Clark Hughes, Jr. He was wanted for possession of a firearm by a felon and two counts of felony flee to elude arrest out of Lincoln County, North Carolina, according to a news release.

Officials say officers attempted to serve the felony warrants on Hughes but when they approached the house he discharged a weapon striking multiple officers.

These officers requested immediate response from other officers. As officers responded, the gunfire continued, striking additional officers, according to a news release.

Hughes then exited the residence with a firearm and law enforcement officers perceived an imminent deadly threat and fired their service weapons striking the suspect in the front yard of the residence, according to the news release. He died at the scene.

Hughes had a lengthly criminal record that dates back to 2010 in North Carolina for breaking and entering in Person County where he served nearly six months in prison before being released in May 2011. He then served nearly a year in prison from October 2012 to September 2013 for possession of a firearm by a felon, speeding to elude arrest, reckless driving, and driving on an expired license, according to court records.

Hughes was then arrested in May 2021 on multiple drug charges in Mecklenburg County but he was never convicted of those charges, according to the North Carolina Department of Corrections website.

Multiple roads were blocked throughout Charlotte on Monday, April 29th as law enforcement officers were rushed to local hospitals, as you can see in the video below.

CMPD says their SWAT team then started negotiations with the other occupants in the house. Two females, including a 17-year-old, exited the residence and were transported to the Law Enforcement Center in Uptown Charlotte and interviewed by detectives. Chief Jennings said no charges have been filed against the females and they are no longer in custody.

Several schools were on lockdown while the investigation was underway. CMS officials say those schools were Devonshire Elementary School, Briarwood Academy, Cochrane Collegiate and Lawrence Orr Elementary School.

Governor Roy Cooper made the following statement on social media.

Charlotte Mayor Li Vyles also put this statement out on social media.

Representative Alma Adams and Senator Thom Tillis gave the following statements on their social media.

Follow WCCB News online and watch WCCB News Rising Monday to Friday from 5am and WCCB NEWS @ TEN each night for the latest details.