Sergeant Patrick John O'Rourke

Patrick John O'Rourke

Sergeant Patrick O'Rourke was shot and killed while making entry into a home on Forest Edge Lane after responding to a domestic dispute and reports of shots fired from inside the house.

Sergeant O'Rourke's shift had just ended when they received the call and he joined other officers to assist. He and four other officers had responded to the initial call shortly after 10:00 pm. Several family members who had been in the home had exited it prior to the arrival of the officers and informed them that the man inside may have committed suicide.

The officers entered the home and made their way to a bedroom. Before entering the bedroom they called out the subject's name but were met with gunfire through the bedroom door. Sergeant O'Rourke was struck by the gunfire and critically wounded. He was transported to McLaren Hospital where he succumbed to his wounds.

After a standoff of nearly 20 hours and after exchanging hundreds of rounds of gunfire with members of several local agencies, the subject was found dead from a single, self-inflicted gunshot in the home the following evening after an entry by members of the Special Response Team.

Sergeant O'Rourke had served with the West Bloomfield Police Department for 12 years and was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant. He is survived by his wife, four children, parents, and three brothers.