When a suspect decides to go on a shooting spree, there is no telling who they will choose to target. There is also no way of knowing just how many people they intend to shoot.

The only thing officers can do is try to stop active shooters in their tracks and prevent any more casualties from occurring. A task one undercover officer in Racine County took very seriously.

Racine County Shooter

At 7:30 a.m., a 22-year-old male was putting gas in his car at a Pilot Travel Center. Out of nowhere, a 32-year-old man walked up and shot him in the head.

Police investigators believe that the victim was a random choice. According to Schmaling, the shooter "lied in wait," looking for the "right opportunity" to shoot someone.

“I watched that video. And I can tell you that in my 27 years of service, I had never seen — I spent a decade in investigations, I’ve seen some very horrific things — folks, I’ve never seen anything like this in my whole life.”

Sheriff Schmaling

Schmaling said, " When (the victim) was done pumping gas, (the gunman) quietly walked up to him and shot him dead." The shooter then went through his victim's pockets, taking his keys, but abandoned the car when another vehicle pulled in.

He shot at them and they drove away. With no one left, he drove off too. He went to another gas station where he approached an undercover officer who was filling up his unmarked car.

Firefight

The deputy fired back at the shooter. According to WLS, the shooter was killed almost instantly. The deputy was hit with two shots and fell to the ground.

According to Schmaling, the gas station was incredibly busy as you can imagine it would be at 7:30 in the morning. Schmaling said, "There is no doubt in my mind the quick, heroic actions of our investigator saved lives today."

The deputy was taken to a nearby Racine hospital for treatment of his wounds. Schmaling said that he personally took the deputy's wife and child to the hospital so they could be there.

Schmaling said that the deputy was only worried about the people around him and their safety. Schmaling continued, "And that’s what he asked me to hospital, while he lied there with bullet holes in his own body, he said ‘Sheriff, did I hit anybody innocent?’"