Digital Bulletin

PROVIDENCE - A veteran city police detective was fatally shot inside department headquarters early this morning, apparently with his own gun, while questioning a suspect in a stabbing, top city officials said today.

James Allen, a 27-year veteran of the force, was shot while questioning Esteban Carpio, 26, about the stabbing of an 84-year-old woman yesterday, officials said at a press conference this morning.

Allen, 50, of Johnston, was taken to Rhode Island Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

The shooting suspect, Carpio, is in custody, according to Mayor David Cicilline and Police Chief Dean Esserman, who spoke at a televised press conference shortly after 9 o'clock this morning.

Esserman said the shooting occurred inside a detective conference room early this morning while Allen was questioning Carpio.

The chief said it is believed that Allen was shot with his own service weapon.

The suspect then escaped by breaking a third-floor window and jumping out of it, Esserman said. He was apprehended a short time later after a struggle at 150 Washington St. in Providence, the chief said.

Police said Carpio was injured in his jump from the third floor, and was taken to the hospital with injures to his leg, arm and head. He was released into police custody this morning.

Esserman provided little information in response to press questions, noting that an investigation into the shooting has begun.

He would not say how Carpio managed to get Allen's weapon, and would not discuss other details leading up to the shooting. He also would not discuss the protocols for carrying weapons inside police headquarters or for interviewing potential suspects.

He did say that the suspect had been handcuffed, then uncuffed. Carpio was not under arrest at the time of the shooting, Esserman said.

No charges had been filed as of this morning. Police would not say whether there were witnesses to the shooting. A gun, believed to be Allen's, was discovered below the window where police said the suspect escaped.

The woman involved in the stabbing, which police said occurred in a struggle over her purse, was hospitalized today and expected to recover.

Authorities cleared the public safety complex after the shooting, and in the early hours of the morning, officers huddled in the parking lot, talking and exchanging hugs and handshakes. Local police were joined by state troopers, and officers blocked access to streets and sidewalks around the complex.

The mayor and police chief lauded Allen at their press conference this morning, as Esserman began his statement with a moment of silence for the officer.

"Jimmy Allen passed in the noblest way possible. He gave his life trying to make our lives safer," said Mayor David Cicilline. "He died a hero."

Esserman said, "It is little consolation that a suspect has been apprehended. We've lost a remarkable man today, and this city is the worse for it."

Allen is survived by his wife and two daughters.

Cicilline called on city residents to pray for Allen's family, and asked them to make a point of stopping police officers to thank them for their service.

Deputy Police Chief Paul Kennedy said Allen was an experienced investigator and one of the department's longest-serving detectives. His father is retired Providence police Capt. Lloyd Allen.

"Jimmy was one of the most wonderful human beings you could ever meet," said Kennedy, who attended the police academy with Allen in 1978. He praised Allen for his kindness as well as a "phenomenal memory" that served him in his work.

Visitors to the building have been required to pass through a metal detector since last fall, shortly after man carrying a loaded gun walked into the building's lobby and told an officer he might hurt himself or someone else. Officers were able to disarm him, and no one was hurt.

The last time a city police officer was shot to death was in January 2000, when Sgt. Cornel Young Jr., off duty and in plain clothes, was killed by fellow officers who mistook him for a suspect when he ran to their aid during a disturbance outside a diner.

-- With projo.com reports

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this report, based on information provided by police, incorrectly spelled the last name of shooting suspect Esteban Carpio.