BINGHAMTON (AP) -- Police say a young man killed in a Christmas morning gunfight in the upstate New York city of Binghamton likely shot himself in the head accidentally.
They say Robert Garcia probably made the mistake as he shot wildly over his shoulder while running from two officers. Police say he started the gunfire by shooting a female officer in the ear at point-blank range. She was treated at a hospital. The officers shot hit him once in the back.
Binghamton Police Chief Joseph Zikuski says the shooting began at 2:30 a.m. on the Memorial Bridge. He says the officers had approached the 20-year-old Garcia and another man as they responded to a report of suspicious men.
Zikuski says the officer was lucky because Garcia was several feet away when he fired.
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