A police officer in Selma was shot and killed Tuesday and a suspect was arrested.

The officer was patrolling shortly before noon when someone flagged down his patrol car and said there was a suspicious person on her property, the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office said on Facebook.

As the officer left his car, he was shot several times. He was taken to Community Regional Medical Center where he later died. The name of the officer, who was with the Selma Police Department for two years, wasn’t immediately released

Officials said it is the department’s first line of duty death.

A 23-year-old man was later found and arrested and a gun believed to have been used in the shooting was seized in the area, police said.

Smittcamp Statement

In a statement, District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp said the suspect, “is an admitted gang member and has been arrested for several felony offenses” that were prosecuted by her office related to robbery, weapons, and drugs.

Smittcamp said the suspect was sentenced in March 2022 to five years and 4 months in prison, but was released 5 months later as a result of credits for time served in local jail and other factors.

“The Governor and certain members of the California legislature have created a warped system that allows active and violent criminals to receive arbitrary ‘time credits’ in an effort to reduce the state prison population to reach their goals of closing more prison facilities,” Smittcamp said.

She said state leaders who support “this over-reaching phenomenon they try to disguise as legitimate criminal justice reform (have) the blood of this officer on their hands.”

GV Wire contributed to this story.