Deputy Shot in Leg by Friendly Fire

VALENCIA — A Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy was shot in the leg early Sunday morning during an encounter with a gun-toting domestic violence suspect, but investigators say the wound was inflicted either by her or one of her partners.

Deputy Deanna Hall and two partners responded to an emergency call in the 25300 block of Via Telino about 12:15 a.m.

The officers were met at the door by Cindy Foy, who told them she was involved in an altercation with her husband, James, according to Deputy Carrie Stuart, a spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Department.

After Cindy Foy told the deputies that her husband had gone into the couple’s bedroom, the officers entered the house. They were met in the hallway by James Foy, 41, who was armed with a semiautomatic handgun, Stuart said.

The man made a movement, causing officers to think he was going to shoot, Stuart said. All three deputies opened fire in response.

None of the shots hit Foy, but one bullet struck Hall in the leg.

“This is a case of friendly fire,” Stuart said. Investigators are trying to determine whether Hall shot herself or was hit by a partner.

The deputies dragged Hall out of the house, continuing to shoot into the hallway because they believed they were being fired upon by James Foy, Stuart said.

Foy retreated into the back of the home, and additional officers from the Sheriff’s Department, along with a search helicopter, arrived within minutes.

Sharon Bronson, who lives across the street, said she was startled by what she took to be the repeated sounds of fireworks.

“I looked out my window to see what was going on, and I see a male deputy by his car, shouting into his radio,” Bronson said. “He was saying, ‘Officer down, officer down!’ The next thing I know, the whole area is surrounded by police.”

As deputies set up a perimeter around the Foy home, Bronson said she and her neighbors on the quiet suburban block were evacuated. About 30 people were asked to leave their homes and go to a staging area one block away while deputies, unsure whether Foy was still in the house, searched the neighborhood.

Deputies found Foy, whom neighbors described as the quiet type who kept to himself, inside his residence. He surrendered about 3 a.m., after a standoff.

By afternoon, sheriff’s investigators were trying to determine whether Foy had fired at the deputies, said Deputy Mark Bailey, a department spokesman.

A neighbor, who asked not to be identified, said Cindy Foy told her that James Foy did not shoot at the officers.

Foy was booked on suspicion of domestic violence and held at the Santa Clarita Valley sheriff’s station.

After surgery on her leg at a local hospital, Hall was listed in stable condition, Stuart said. The names of her partners were not released by the Sheriff’s Department.

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Times staff librarian William Holmes contributed to this report.