GVSU student shot at apt complex

ALLENDALE, Mich. (WOOD) - A Grand Valley State University student shot and seriously injured in his off-campus apartment by an Ottawa County deputy was not armed, and police are trying to determine whether the shooting was justified.

Derek Copp, 20, who moved into the Campus View Apartments in August, suffered a single gunshot to the upper right chest -- fired from a 9 mm Glock. He reportedly is in serious condition at Spectrum Health Butterworth in Grand Rapids.

The deputy, a 12-year veteran, was among five officers from the West Michigan Enforcement Team conducting a drug raid of the lower-level apartment on 42nd Avenue, said WEMET commanding officer Lt. Cameron Henke.

They were entering about 9 p.m. Wednesday through the rear sliding door when the deputy, whose name was not released, fired one shot, police said. That deputy, a 12-year veteran, is on paid administrative leave pending the investigation.

Police would not say what kinds of drugs they were looking for or whether they found any evidence of narcotics in the apartment.

They said they don't know whether the deputy felt threatened by Copp, who lived in the apartment.

The apartment manager said he was trying to reassure tenants and their parents that the complex is safe. He calls it the "no-fun" off-campus apartment, where tenants sign agreements to not drink alcohol or use drugs while living there.

However, students who live next door -- Joe Putra, 21, of Jackson, and JoJo Scott, 19, of Jackson -- said the raided apartment was often crowded, had people coming in and out, and often smelled of marijuana. They weren't surprised the apartment was raided, but questioned the use of force.

They described Copp as a laid-back student who had offered to help them move in. His MySpace.com page says he is originally from Spring Arbor and went to Jackson Community College from 2006 to 2007. His major at GVSU is fiction filmaking.

Copps' family doesn't want to talk.