CdA police officer dies from shooting
A Coeur d’Alene police officer shot this morning in the line of duty has died at the hospital with his family at his side.
Sgt. Greg Moore, a 16-year veteran of the Coeur d’Alene Police Department, spent most of the day in critical condition after he was shot in the head by a suspect who then stole the officer’s patrol car and fled the scene.
Police said in a news release this evening that Moore, a husband and father of two, died at 5:50 p.m. at Kootenai Health.
“Words cannot adequately express the level of mourning we feel for Sergeant Moore’s family and our law enforcement family,” the police news release said.
Mayor Steve Widmyer said, “Our community has been wounded; and in some ways it may never be the same. We have lost a great man. Over time our community will heal, but we will always bear a scar and we will never forget the bravery and sacrifice of Sergeant Greg Moore.”
Jonathan Daniel Renfro, 26, of Rathdrum is suspected of shooting Moore in the quiet northwest Coeur d’Alene neighborhood about 1:30 a.m. Renfro was arrested a few hours later when police cornered him in a Walmart parking lot in Post Falls.
Renfro was charged with attempted murder and other felonies Tuesday afternoon, and now will face a murder charge. A Kootenai County magistrate judge set his bail at $2 million. If convicted he could spend the rest of his life in prison.
“This was an unprovoked attack on a law enforcement officer,” Kootenai County Prosecuting Attorney Barry McHugh said at the court hearing to set Renfro’s bail. “It was very, very violent, and resulted in a very grave injury to the officer.”
Renfro, who has a criminal history spanning more than a decade, was charged with five felonies: attempted murder, stealing a police car, stealing a police gun, being a convict in possession of a gun, and removing a gun from an officer acting in his official capacity.
“Subsequent to his arrest by law enforcement, he made a number of admissions to having committed the conduct that is charged in the criminal complaint,” McHugh said of Renfro.
Appearing in court, Renfro sat shackled in a red and white jumpsuit, with his head down for much of the hearing. He was represented by a public defender. Security was heavy, and the seats were packed with law enforcement officers.
1st District Court Magistrate James Stow asked Renfro if he understood the charges against him, and Renfro said he did. The judge appointed him a public defender.
Prosecutors allege that Renfro used his own handgun to shoot Moore in the 2800 block of Wilbur Avenue, then took the sergeant’s gun off of him as Moore lay on the ground.
“He fled from the scene, leaving the officer lying in the street,” McHugh said.
A neighbor who heard the commotion and saw Moore on the ground called police. Officers from multiple agencies rushed to the scene and began searching for a suspect and gathering evidence, including body camera footage from Moore.
“An officer rang our bell at 2 a.m. and told us to stay inside,” said Chris Weber, who lives at the corner of Wilbur Avenue and Timberlake Loop where the shooting took place. “We’re a little freaked out this guy was walking through our neighborhood last night.”
Ordinarily, Weber said, the neighborhood is “a pretty calm, quiet place.”
Police believe Renfro tried to dispose of evidence after allegedly stealing Moore’s car and leading police on a high-speed chase in west Post Falls. An officer in Post Falls spotted the stolen car heading west on West Seltice Way at North McGuire Road and pursued it.
The suspect abandoned the car near a Sysco Spokane Inc. food distribution center close to the Beck Road interchange, and police set up a perimeter and called in a K-9 unit, which tracked the suspect to a nearby Walmart store. Renfro was found hiding under a semi-truck trailer, Miller said.
“He was not very compliant,” he said. “The dog subsequently contacted the individual and he was arrested without further incident.”
Asked about the weapon that was used, Miller said detectives from several agencies are in the field still collecting evidence.
“There’s multiple scenes that we’re trying to get processed, a lot of evidence we’re trying to collect,” Miller said at a press conference Tuesday morning. “It’s going to take us a while to get through it all.”
In the Post Falls development where the Walmart is located, two blocks of Pointe Parkway were blocked off as law enforcement officials loaded the stolen patrol car onto a trailer, and a police dog and officers searched a field near I-90.
Investigators also collected video files from the officer’s patrol car and his body camera, but the footage had not been processed as of this morning, Miller said.
In 2008 Renfro stole a red Subaru with a friend. They were arrested in Reno, Nevada and extradited to Moscow, Idaho.
While in jail he hatched a plan to escape. After a court hearing on the theft case he kicked a jailer in the leg. The attack in the hallway outside the Latah County Courthouse courtroom didn’t work as the jailer took Renfro to the floor and handcuffed him while his friend made a brief run for freedom.
Renfro later said he tried to escape because he was angry he was “going to miss Christmas.” He also said he was trained in mixed martial arts and cage fighting.
He was sent to prison for one to five years.
Mike Kralicek is the last Coeur d’Alene officer shot in the line of duty, in 2004. The officer was critically injured when a fleeing suspect shot him, and spent many months in rehabilitation and physical therapy. He’s permanently disabled from the shooting.
“We appreciate all of the kindness our community has shown to our officers, and the thoughtful prayers said for Sergeant Moore,” the police department said in tonight’s statement. “We wish to express our sincerest gratitude to the dedicated, professional, emergency first responders, and medical team and staff at Kootenai Health that cared for Greg in an effort to save him.”
Mayor Widmyer added, “Our hearts go out to his family, our police department and all that knew him. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.”