by Steve Miletich
A Metro bus driver was shot several times this morning in downtown Seattle in a confrontation with a passenger who was shot and severely wounded by police after he boarded a second bus, Seattle police said.
The bus driver, 64, was shot around 8:45 a.m. while the Route 27 bus was at Third Avenue near University Street, but his injuries are not life-threatening, police said. The driver was in satisfactory condition at Harborview Medical Center.
King County Executive Dow Constantine, who visited the bus driver at Harborview, said he was “remarkably upbeat” despite wounds to his face and arm. He has been a driver for Metro since 1999.
Seattle police Assistant Chief Paul McDonagh said two officers were near Third and University when they were contacted by people who had been on the bus in which the driver was shot. One officer assisted the wounded driver while the other chased the gunman south on Third, McDonagh said.The man ran west on University, firing at the officer, McDonagh said.
Later in day, Acting Police Chief Jim Pugel said the man pointed the gun but that only “clicks” might have come from the revolver he was carrying.
After running south on Second Avenue, the man boarded, along with other passengers, a bus stopped on Seneca Street at the intersection, police said.
Officers converged on the bus and opened fire on the suspect, McDonagh said. About a dozen bullet holes were visible on the front of the bus.
Four officers, including two who were off-duty, opened fire when the man raised his gun, then fired again when he raised the gun a second time, Pugel said.
The gunman, identified by a law enforcement source as Martin A. Duckworth, 31, suffered what were said to be life-threatening wounds. He also was taken to Harborview, where he was listed in critical condition.
