{Injured policeman pulled officer hit by bullets to safety
The Reporter Staff
A banged up Fond du Lac Police Department officer was able to pull a critically injured colleague to safety during the gunfight Sunday morning on South Lincoln Avenue.
Officer Zach Schultz is one of the many heroes Fond du Lac Police Department Chief Tony Barthuly said would emerge as details are revealed of the standoff with an armed man who shot two Fond du Lac Police Department officers, one fatally, Sunday morning.
The shootout left Officer Craig Birkholz, 28, dead and Officer Ryan Williams, 33, in critical condition as of Tuesday afternoon at Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah.
Birkholz was shot in the D&D tavern parking lot at Division and Lincoln streets as he arrived at the scene to help his fellow officers.
The investigation has been turned over the state Division of Criminal Investigation. They have declined to comment on the investigation.
Officers went to the home of James M. Cruckson, 30, of 24 S. Lincoln Ave., about 6:30 a.m. Sunday to investigate a sexual assault report.
Cruckson fired shots from a high-power rifle into Williams’ chest and shoulder after Williams entered the home.
Fond du Lac Police Department Capt. Steve Klein told The Reporter Tuesday that despite suffering injuries from a fall on the steps in the home, Schultz was able to pull Williams far enough out of the home so Lt. Jason Laridaen could continue to move Williams out of harm’s way.
Officials also said Tuesday that Schultz was holed up in Cruckson’s basement with fellow Fond du Lac Officer Becky Kollmann, Capt. Jon Gutzmann and Cruckson’s sister as Cruckson exchanged rounds from the window of his home with responding officers. Cruckson later took his own life. He was found dead in the home shortly before noon.
SWAT team members rescued those trapped in the basement before tear gas was fired into the home by SWAT team members around 11 a.m.}
I have a good number of friends on the city and county police force and my heart breaks for them and all the families and friends of the fallen and wounded officers. It has been a very ,very sad week . Yesterday officer Birkholz body was brought back to FDL from his hometown of Kenosha for a procession and memorial service. Below is a link to a video that Matts cousin made (her husband is a fireman and EMT) it is a little long(about 13.5 min.) b/c police officers and fierman from all over WI joined the procession. If you dont want to watch it all start around 9min.from there to the end it is just AMAZING..and ver,very hard not to cry. The weather was horrible yesterday and most of the town and ppl from surrounding communities came to pay tribute to this amazing officer.
Here is the link (I hope it works)
https://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=10150137614404681&oid=141934975872170&comments
In closing I had to add these 2 pictures that I pulled from his memorial Facebook site, they are just to amazing not to share.
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| This was captioned "From one officers family to another" |
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| this was captioned..."This is the picture of a great man leaving for his next shift." |
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