AGAIN: Trouble finds off-duty cops unprepared to help

Columbus' NBC4i.com is reporting that two off-duty and unarmed officers were "going out for an evening" when they came across an armed robery in progress. As Ohio's defenseless citizens are all too familiar with after having suffered a 150-year ban on bearing arms for self-defense, the cops quickly became targets themselves when they tried to assist.

From the story:

Police were searching for a pair of armed robbers who they said fired on two unarmed Columbus police officers late Wednesday.

Investigators released surveillance photos of the robbery that took place shortly before 10 p.m. at AmeriStop, located at 442 Walford St. in northeast Columbus.

Police said that two armed men entered the store and took some cash from the business. During the robbery, police said one of the men fired a shot into the store's ceiling.

According to police, two off-duty officers said they heard gunshots near the store. When the officers arrived, they saw a man running out of the business. A second man then came out, stopped and fired multiple shots at the officers, NBC 4's Elizabeth Scarborough reported.

One of the bullets pierced their windshield and lodged in the dashboard, coming within inches of the officers, Scarborough reported.

No one was hurt and investigators said the officers were lucky they were not struck by the gunfire, Scarborough reported.

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This is the second time in three weeks that a defenseless off-duty officer in Ohio was caught unprepared in the vicinity of a shooting.

On April 19, Butler Co. Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Roberts was shot in the abdomen with a 12-gauge slug, fired by a fleeing bank robber. Nearby, Camden police chief Mike Croucher, who was off-duty and had been following the criminals for miles, found himself unable to do anything but phone for help, because he had chosen not to carry his sidearm while off-duty.

In a news report that followed, Chief Croucher said his "only regret was not having his gun with him at the time".