Wisconsin children's hospital on lockdown as police shoot armed man

(Story updated at 8:10 a.m. ET, Friday, Nov. 15, 2013.)

The 296-bed Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in suburban Wauwautosa was placed on lockdown for two hours Thursday as police shot and subdued a man wanted on a felony warrant.

Shortly before noon Thursday, Milwaukee police responded to a call regarding a wanted man who was “known to carry a firearm,” Milwaukee Police Sgt. David Muehl said. A city police officer went to the seventh floor of the hospital and subsequently shot and arrested a 22-year-old man with “a lengthy arrest record.”

The man was holding a baby when officers found him, and he brandished a gun while fleeing down a hallway, the Associated Press reported. Police shot him twice in the arm, causing him to drop the gun, according to the AP report.

No one else was injured in the altercation. City police said they recovered a handgun from the suspect, who was being treated for non-life-threatening injuries in a nearby hospital. His name will not be released by police until he's formally charged.

The officer who shot the suspect is a 27-year-old male with six years of service. He was placed on administrative duty while the incident is investigated by authorities, per standard procedure, police said.

Police Chief Edward Flynn defended the decision to confront the man in the hospital rather than waiting for him to leave. "The challenge is, what if he decides not to come out? What if it turns out there's a domestic violence circumstance going on? What if it turns out he doesn't want to let go of the baby?" Flynn said. "It's our moral obligation to investigate these reports and put ourselves at physical risk to do it."

Neither the hospital nor police would comment on the events that led to the police call.

A hospital spokeswoman said the situation was “immediately contained by police,” and there was no danger to patients, families or employees. “In accordance with our emergency response plan, Children's activated its active shooter protocol, which placed all Children's buildings on lockdown with employees and patients sheltered in place,” spokeswoman Christy Pierce said in an e-mail.

The hospital was kept on lockdown from 11:55 a.m. until 2:05 p.m., when police issued “a complete all-clear,” she said.

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