Gagnon returns home after Blanchard shooting
(Photo by JUDD WILSON) A parade of law enforcement vehicles escort Bonner County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Michael Gagnon home Monday afternoon after he was released from Kootenai Health. Gagnon had been hospitalized since he and fellow BCSO Deputy Justin Penn were shot trying to serve a warrant on Blanchard resident, Adam Deacon Foster.
(Photo courtesy JARDE RENEAU/Coeur d’Alene Police Department) Bonner County Deputy Michael Gagnon gets a hug from fellow BCSO Deputy Justin Penn as he is wheeled out of Kootenai Health by Sheriff Daryl Wheeler. Gagnon was released from the Coeur d’Alene hospital Monday and Penn was released on Friday.
—Photo by KEITH KINNAIRD The procession conveying injured Bonner County sheriff's Deputy Michael Gagnon makes its way up First Avenue on Monday.
(Photo courtesy JARDE RENEAU/Coeur d'Alene Police Department) Bonner County Deputy Michael Gagnon is greeted by fellow BCSO Deputy Justin Penn as he is wheeled out of Kootenai Health by Sheriff Daryl Wheeler. Gagnon was released from the Coeur d'Alene hospital Monday and Penn was released on Friday.
(Photo courtesy JARDE RENEAU/Coeur d'Alene Police Department) Bonner County Deputy Michael Gagnon is greeted with applause from area law enforcement personnel as he is wheeled out of Kootenai Health after he was released from the Coeur d'Alene hospital Monday.
SANDPOINT — A Bonner County sheriff’s deputy who was shot in the line of duty last week was returned home Monday in a lengthy procession of public safety vehicles from around the region.
Deputy Michael Gagnon waved as onlookers, which included Bonner County Courthouse employees, gathered on the sidewalk to clap in appreciation as the procession of police, fire and conservation vehicles snake its way through downtown.
Gagnon, 57, was seriously wounded in a Blanchard gunbattle that also wounded fellow Deputy Justin Penn, 30. Penn was released from Kootenai Health on Friday and the North Idaho Critical Incident Task Force announced Gagnon’s release on Monday.
Gagnon, Penn and Deputy William Craffey came under fire while attempting to serve an arrest warrant on Adam Deacon Foster at 780 Mountain View Road on Jan. 16. Foster was also injured in the exchange of gunfire, the task force said. Foster’s condition was upgraded to good and was served with a warrant of detention on Saturday in a misdemeanor battery case that was pending against him.
The warrant which brought deputies to Foster’s doorstep remained filed under seal on Monday and the task force said it is declining to comment further on that aspect of the investigation.
The underlying criminal case is expected to unseal when Foster makes an initial appearance in Bonner County Magistrate Court or if an attorney makes an appearance on his behalf.
Bonner County Prosecutor Louis Marshall said Foster will be taken into custody immediately after he’s discharged from the hospital, although it was not immediately clear when he would be returned to Bonner County.
Foster, 30, has yet to be charged with a crime in connection with the shootout.
Aside from the pending case, Foster essentially has no prior criminal record in the state of Idaho, according to the state supreme court repository. Bonner Dispatch logs indicate deputies had been to Foster’s residence several times in the weeks leading up the shootings.
Deputies investigated a report of a family offense on Jan. 10 and conducted follow-up the next day, dispatch logs show.
All three deputies, meanwhile, are on administrative leave while the task force conducts its investigation, a standard protocol during shooting incidents. The task force said it plans to begin scheduling interviews with the deputies today.
Penn has five and a half of years of service with the sheriff’s office, while Gagnon and Craffey have been with the department for nearly two and nearly one year, respectively.