Reserve Zachary Police Officer 41-year-old Christopher Lawton was killed after two suspects allegedly ran over him in a Wal Mart parking lot in Baker. East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff Sid Gautreaux says Lawton was attempting to arrest 33-year-old Albert Franklin on active felony warrants. 30-year-old Ashley Chaney was also in the U-Haul when they fled the scene.
Franklin and Chaney were apprehended in the truck about 20 minutes later. Gautreaux says law enforcement were working undercover and had been seeking Franklin and Chaney for some time.
Officers on the scene saluted the fallen officer as his body was put into the coroner’s van. Gautreaux says their department is working through the process of comprehending what occurred.
Gautreaux says no shots were fired, insinuating Lawton was killed as a result of being hit by the truck. An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.