Douglas County Deputy Sheriff Jeff Pelle remains hospitalized after a “bullet missed his heart by an inch,” his father, Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said.
Jeff Pelle was one of four law enforcement officers wounded Sunday in a fatal shootout with a gunman at a Douglas County apartment complex. Deputy Zackari Parrish was killed, two other deputies, a Castle Rock police officer and two neighbors were wounded.
Pelle, who also experienced a collapsed lung, is the only one still hospitalized.
His father said Jeff Pelle is expected to recover. “They got him up (Tuesday) with a lot of help and he walked around the ICU,” Joe Pelle said.
But even as the Pelle family is relieved and grateful for his prognosis, they also grieve the death of Parrish.
“It could have been our funeral, so there is a relief,” Joe Pelle said. “There is also a tremendous sadness for the family of Zack and his little girls.”
Parrish’s funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday at Cherry Hills Community Church.
