Alabama officer shot while investigating robbery released from hospital

Published 6:13 am Monday, February 3, 2020

An officer in Alabama who was shot while working security at a church has been release from the hospital, according to the president of Birmingham’s Fraternal Order of Police.

Narcotics detective John Finke went home Sunday, Birmingham FOP President Lt. Richard Haluska told news outlets.

Finke responded to a robbery call last week while working security in the Woodlawn community, news outlets reported.

The officer confronted two suspects and that’s when the shooting occurred. He was shot three times, according to news outlets.

Finke had multiple surgeries while he was in the hospital, Haluska said. The officer was expected to continue physical therapy on an outpatient basis.

Two people were taken into custody after investigators tracked two cellphones stolen in the robbery, Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith said. A man and a teen have been charged in the case, news outlets reported.

Finke has been with the department since 2005 and is a detective in the narcotics division, Smith said. He was working security at the Church of the Highlands, a large nondenominational church in the area.