Search underway for gunman who shot SC cop

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — Law officers are combing a South Carolina city after a North Charleston police officer was shot in the line of duty.

A North Charleston Police Department spokesman says the officer shot early Wednesday was saved by his bullet-proof vest and is alert.

A helicopter and tracking dogs are involved in the search that includes areas around Interstate 26. Patrol cruisers were stopping motorists on Rivers Avenue.

Before this year, a North Charleston police officer hadn’t been shot while on duty since 1985. But Wednesday’s shooting marks the second time this year an officers has been wounded in similar circumstances.

Officer David Winslette was hit by multiple shots as he approached a robbery suspect at a convenience store in January. The bullets his body armor and knee.