Sgt. 'feared for life' after being shot

MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) - The Muskegon officer testified Wednesday that she "feared for my own life" after being shot in the leg in December, but didn't cry out because she didn't want to distract her fellow officers from the armed suspect.

Sgt. Monica Shirey was shot around 3:30 a.m. on Dec. 8, 2012 while assisting the Muskegon County Sheriff's Department at a domestic dispute in Cedar Creek Township. 

The suspect -- 44-year-old Paul Osborn -- faces six criminal counts in the case, including assault with intent to commit murder and assault with a dangerous weapon.

Responding officers testified Wednesday they knew the suspect was armed when they were called to the scene and that he was allegedly erratic and suicidal.

But they did not know he had exited his home and was in the driveway. When officers pointed a flashlight in the suspect's direction after seeing movement, he opened fire with a shotgun, they said.

Shirey Wednesday described having no time to react to the suspect before he shot at her.

Four other officers returned fire, shooting dozens of rounds. Only one hit Osborne on his back side.

In uniform and appearing to have recovered from her wounds, Shirey was emotional on the stand as she described the feeling of being shot.

"I feared for my own life," she told the court.

But Shirey said she didn't scream after being shot out of fear of diverting other officers' attention to her.

"If I would yell out or scream that would put the other officers in jeopardy of being harmed themselves. They could turn their attention toward me. I did not want them injured or hurt. Obviously, our lives were in jeopardy," Shirey said. 

Bloody photos of Shirey's injuries were shown to the court.

Osborn's defense attorney says prosecutors overcharged his client. He said Osborn was not trying to kill anyone when he opened fire. Rather, he said, Osborn wanted officers to kill him.

But the prosecution disagreed and had testimony Wednesday to back up their opinion. Officers say what happened as they arrested their suspect showed Osborn's mindset.

"He said that he wanted to shoot us and he wished that he would have hit more of us," testified Muskegon Police Officer Heather Marciniak.

Osborn may take the stand Thursday in his own defense, 24 Hour News 8 was told.

Noticeably missing from Wednesday's proceedings was a jury. It was a bench trial, meaning a judge will render the verdict.

The defense attorney says he chose a bench trial for a reason. It's because of dramatic video that the judge watched in chambers Wednesday because of a technical problem. It has the audio recordings from officers' microphones during the shooting. The defense feared a jury would not be able to make an objective decision after hearing it.

The judge could begin deliberations as early as Thursday afternoon.