PHILADELPHIA – One of two police officers shot Monday night in Philadelphia near a Fourth of July gathering found the slug still lodged in his hat, according to reports.
A 36-year-old Philadelphia Police Highway Patrol officer and a 44-year-old member of the Montgomery County Bomb Unit were injured in the shooting that took place shortly before 10 p.m. near the Parkway Welcome America Festival, Verve Times reported.
Photos of the hat worn by the highway patrol officer show a bloodied picture inside the head cover with a bullet lodged in its side. The blood-stained photograph inside the cap is a memorial card for a Philadelphia police chaplain who recently passed away, according to Fox News Digital.
John McNesby, president of Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5, provided the photos to Fox 29.
“It is miraculous the fact that the round stopped in his hat,” Philadelphia Police Department Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said. “I think initially it went up the inside and hit his forehead and then the round stopped in his hat.”
A photo shows a bullet lodged in the blood soiled cover worn by a Philadelphia police officer who was wounded in the head on July 4, 2022. (John McNesby/Chris O’Connell/Fox 29)
The second officer suffered a gunshot wound to the right shoulder. Both officers were transported and treated at Jefferson University Hospital. They were each released about two hours later and will recover at home, according to the news outlet.
Good News: According to police on scenes both police officers shot tonight on the Parkway have just been released from the hospital. @FOX29philly pic.twitter.com/xwRxSI9coB
— Chris O'Connell (@CoconnellFox29) July 5, 2022
The officer who received a gunshot wound to the head can be seen driven from the hospital with his head wrapped in a medical compress.
Going Home:Philadelphia Highway Patrol officer being released from the hospital with a bandage around his head after being shot tonight on the Parkway. We are waiting more details on the shooting from @PhillyPolice @FOX29philly pic.twitter.com/CYBV0VPUs1
— Chris O'Connell (@CoconnellFox29) July 5, 2022
