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XPost: alt.law-enforcement, alt.health.systems

A police officer was killed and five other people were wounded when a man
took medical staff hostage and opened fire at a York, Pennsylvania,
hospital on Saturday morning, officials said.

The gunman, identified by authorities as Diogenes Archangel Ortiz, 49, was
also killed, authorities said.

Two other law enforcement officers were shot by the gunman and are in
stable condition, York County District Attorney Tim Barker said at an
afternoon news conference.

An intensive care unit doctor, nurse and a custodian suffered gunshot
wounds and a fourth employee was injured in a fall, according to Barker.

The gunman had arrived at the hospital carrying a bag with a handgun and
zip ties and went straight to the ICU, where he held staff members
hostage, Barker said.

Officers were preparing to confront the gunman and breach the ICU when
Ortiz held an ICU employee hostage at gunpoint and ordered police to get
back, according to Barker.

�They did, so the person being held hostage would not be harmed, and were attempting to try to engage in discussion with Mr. Archangel Ortiz,�
Barker said. The woman being held hostage also had her hands tied with zip ties, according to Barker.

When Ortiz came out into the hallway still holding the ICU employee at gunpoint, the officers opened fire and fatally shot Ortiz, Barker
confirmed.

While investigators have not yet given a motive for the attack, the
incident appears to have been specifically targeted at the ICU, Barker
said. In the previous week, the gunman was in contact with the ICU for a medical purpose involving another individual, according to Barker.

�No patients have been injured. The hospital is now secure,� Susan Manko, spokesperson for UPMC Memorial in York, told CNN.

The officer who died was Andrew Duarte, his department confirmed on
Facebook. Duarte had joined the department in 2022 after five years at the Denver Police Department, according to his LinkedIn profile. In 2021,
Duarte had received the Mothers Against Drunk Driving hero award for his
work in impaired driving enforcement.

�He was someone who put on the uniform of service and went out to try and
keep his neighbors safe,� Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who met with
Duarte�s parents Saturday evening, said at the news conference. �He is to
be commended for a life of service, albeit cut way too short from a life
of service to others. We�re deeply grateful to him.�

Pennsylvania lost �a hero,� Fraternal Order of Police State Lodge
President Joseph Regan and York County Lodge #73 President Trent Bushman
said in a statement.

�Officer Duarte�s bravery and commitment to upholding the law are a
testament to the selflessness shown daily by those who have dedicated themselves to protecting and serving,� the statement read.

Witnesses describe scene of shooting
Jayden Robertson and his grandmother were visiting his aunt�s hospital
room on the fourth floor at UPMC Memorial Saturday morning when an
announcement was made about an intruder with a weapon.

At first, they didn�t think much of it, assuming it might just be �a
little kid who forgot he had a pocket knife in his pocket or something
like that,� Robertson told CNN.

It wasn�t until a friend texted him a news report stating there had been a shooting at the hospital he and his family fully understood the gravity of
the situation.

When Robertson looked out the window, he saw many police cars and officers running to their vehicles to grab guns and shields.

In the same building, Betsy Small was visiting her mother at the hospital around 10:30 a.m. when she started to hear �strange noises, a lot of
activity, and then alarms going off.�

When she looked out the window, people were running, she said, and a woman announced something about a �lockdown� over the intercom system.

�I thought, oh something�s going on in here, but you never think it�s
going to be a shooting, not in a hospital,� Small, 58, told CNN.

When the alarms went off, Small said she believes her hospital room door locked. She crouched down on the floor near the window for safety, her
mother fast asleep in her hospital bed throughout all the commotion.

Within minutes, three or four police cars had arrived and officers were
running into the building with shields and guns, she said she saw through
the hospital room window.

For the next hour or so, Small watched through the hospital door window as nurses ran back and forth on her floor while yelling at one another.

At 11:41 a.m., her daughter texted her that a shooter �had been taken
out.�

As of 3 p.m., Small was not yet allowed to leave the building and said she
has seen some of the nurses crying with one another in the hallway.

�I feel sad for everybody, honestly I do. It�s a sad situation,� Small
said.

The weekend incident happened as the nation continues to grapple with mass shootings in places usually considered safe. It was one of at least 37
mass shootings in just the first two months of this year, according to the
Gun Violence Archive. Like CNN, the archive defines a mass shooting as one
in which four or more people are shot, not including the shooter.

And in the first month of this year, at least 31 officers have been shot
in the line of duty � including two who were killed, according to the
National Fraternal Order of Police.

For health care workers, the violent situation came as they grappled with rising threats in their workplaces. Health care professionals are five
times more likely to experience workplace violence than workers in other fields, according to the American Hospital Association.

Shapiro said during the news conference state and local leaders will work
with affected health care workers to ensure they have the resources to
heal.

�I know that the trauma that the health care workers here today had to
deal with is not something that goes away overnight,� Shapiro said.

�Every day when you put on your white coat or your uniform of service to
others here in this wonderful hospital, or any hospital across
Pennsylvania, you are performing that function because you care about your neighbors and you want to make sure that they are healthy and safe.
Something like this should never, ever happen in your place of work.�

Pennsylvania state Sen. Dawn Keefer and state Rep. Seth Grove said in a
joint statement they are praying for �those who were injured and for the
loved ones� coping with an unthinkable act.�

�Our hearts go out to the victims, their families and all those affected
by this senseless act of violence,� Keefer and Grove said, thanking first responders �for their swift actions in securing the scene, treating the
wounded and ensuring the safety of our community.�

UPMC Memorial, a 104-bed hospital, opened in August 2019 and provides
emergency medical care, cardiology and vascular services, chronic disease management, and surgical services. York is located in southern
Pennsylvania.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/22/us/pennsylvania-upmc-memorial-hospital- active-shooter/index.html

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