An off-duty Louisiana police officer shot a 14-year-old boy in the head after he woke up to a noise outside his home, authorities said.
The shooting happened just after 3 a.m. on Friday at a home in Metairie, about seven miles northwest of New Orleans.
Jefferson Parish Sheriff Joe Lopinto identified the homeowner as an officer with another police agency.
Lopinto said the homeowner was asleep when he heard noises outside his home near his car. The man saw several juveniles in his front yard and "during that incident ended up shooting the 14-year-old," Lopinto said at a news conference.
The boy is hospitalized in critical condition. The other juveniles involved fled, but police have been able to identify them and have spoken to some of them, the sheriff said.
The off-duty officer was not in uniform at the time of the shooting. He "exited his house as a regular homeowner," Lopinto said, adding that he has been cooperative with the investigation.
"We're treating him as a victim and a suspect," Lopinto said.