Oregon State News by Cyn Mackley
An Oregon man who shot three police officers as part of a wild police chase will spend the next 23 years in the state penitentiary.
Marion County Circuit Court the honorable Judge Daniel J. Wren sentenced Alejandro Maciel-Salcedo for 23 years for the attempted murder of Salem Police Detectives Angus Scott Emmons, Oscar Zambrano, and Anthony Burke.
On July 17, 2020, Salem Police Detectives Angus Scott Emmons, Oscar Zambrano, and Anthony Burke were conducting police surveillance on Maciel-Salcedo and his associates. Maciel-Salcedo was a suspect in a Salem Police Strategic Investigations Unit investigation where he transported and facilitated the delivery of a quarter-pound of methamphetamine.
As part of that investigation, the detectives received a judicial warrant to place a tracking device on Maciel-Salcedo’s vehicle, a white Dodge Charger. This was the same vehicle used to deliver the methamphetamine.
Wild Police Chase
The detectives attempted to place the tracking device on the vehicle outside Maciel-Salcedo’s residence in the early morning hours of July 17, 2020. While Detective Burke was under the vehicle affixing the tracker, Maciel-Salcedo’s nephew came outside, spotted the detectives, and gave chase. Detectives Zambrano and Burke ran to their undercover police vehicle and Detective Emmons, who was waiting in the driver’s seat, drove them quickly from the scene. The nephew saw them leave, ran back to the residence, notified Maciel-Salcedo, and got in the passenger seat as Maciel-Salcedo pursued the detectives in his Dodge Charger.
Detective Emmons drove a quick, meandering route away from the residence before trying to return to the police department. However, as the undercover vehicle was on Highway 22 heading west, detectives heard at least one gunshot from behind them and saw Maciel-Salcedo’s Dodge Charger quickly approaching. As it pulled alongside the detective’s vehicle, at least three additional shots were fired into the passenger compartment of their vehicle. Detectives Zambrano and Burke laid flat on the floor, but Detective Emmons (driver) was struck in his left arm. As the bullet passed through his arm, it shattered his ulna. Maciel-Salcedo sped off and returned to the residence, while Detective Emmons was able to drive himself to the Salem Hospital emergency room.
SWAT Standoff
Law enforcement quickly surrounded the residence. SWAT removed numerous people from the home, including the nephew and several children before they extracted Maciel-Salcedo from his hiding place in the rafters of an attic crawl space. Maciel-Salcedo’s .45 caliber firearm was located in a crawlspace under the house where Maciel-Salcedo threw it before he attempted to hide.
One bullet casing was recovered from the side of the road some distance from where the shooting occurred. When law enforcement searched Maciel-Salcedo’s vehicle pursuant to a search warrant, two additional bullet casings were recovered from the driver's side floorboard and one casing was found on the driver’s side windshield. All four of the .45 caliber casings were forensically matched to Maciel-Salcedo’s firearm found in the crawlspace of his residence.
Maciel-Salcedo was both the undisputed driver of the Dodge Charger and sole shooter during the incident.
Drugs and Guns Discovered
In addition to the casings in his vehicle, law enforcement also uncovered a user amount of methamphetamine, ammunition, and multiple firearms in the vehicle, including two shotguns and an AR15-style assault rifle with no serial number. At the time, Maciel-Salcedo was on probation in Marion County Circuit Court cases 18CR07935 (Unlawful Use of a Weapon, Menacing constituting Domestic Violence, and Assault in the Fourth Degree) and 19CR52718 (Burglary in the First Degree), both of which prohibited him from possessing firearms.
Maciel-Salcedo was sentenced for Attempted Murder in the First Degree, Attempted Murder in the Second Degree, Assault in the First Degree with a Firearm, Unlawful Use of a Weapon, and Felon in Possession of a Firearm in 20CR39285. The remaining counts were dismissed pursuant to negotiations.
Routine Work Turns Tragic
Marion County District Attorney Paige Clarkson stated that “This case and other recent tragic events reminds me how dangerous law enforcement can be. I am so thankful that Detective Emmons wasn’t more seriously injured that morning. Detective Emmons, Detective Zambrano, and Detective Burke- as well as all of our local law enforcement- put their lives at risk every day to keep our community safe. That fact is important to remember as we see how quickly routine police work, such as court-approved surveillance, can turn deadly. I am honored to work with them as we continue to hold dangerous offenders accountable."
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