Ledbetter One of Two St. Louis Police Officers Wounded in Wednesday Homicide Incident

Confirmation today that one of the St. Louis Police Department officers wounded in the pursuit of homicide suspects is a Fayette County native.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch confirmed that the officer more seriously wounded is 25-year-old Colin Ledbetter. The officer is a Vandalia area native. Local law enforcement contacts had indicated Ledbetter was one of the wounded officers, but there had been no independent confirmation, and the St. Louis Police Department had not released the identities of the officers.

The Post-Dispatch spoke with Ledbetter's father, Steve, who said Colin was still not conscious as of Thursday afternoon, but said his son is "doing very well, better than expected." Steve Ledbetter told the newspaper that Colin's heart stopped after he and another officer were shot. The two are patients at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis.

The two officers were wounded while chasing a vehicle believed involved in a homicide in Ferguson, Missouri. At least one of the three people being pursued shot at the officers, hitting Ledbetter in the stomach and the other officer in the leg.

Officers returned fire and one of the men in the fleeing car, 23-year-old Equan Hopson of St. Louis was hit and later died from his injuries.