A gunman killed three police officers and injured two others in a shootout Wednesday afternoon in North Codorus Township, York County. The officers were responding to the home of the shooter’s ex-girlfriend’s mother as part of a search in order to serve the man a warrant on charges of stalking and trespassing.
The gunman died during the ambush, who officials have identified as 24-year-old Matthew James Ruth.
Here’s what we know about the officers
At a press conference Thursday afternoon, York County District Attorney Tim Barker identified the three fallen officers as:
- Detective Sgt. Cody Becker
- Detective Mark Baker
- Detective Isaiah Emenheiser
Barker said that a fourth Northern York County Regional Police Department detective and a deputy sheriff from the York County Sheriff’s office were shot and left critically injured.
In consideration of the wounded officers’ privacy, officials did not provide the names of the fourth detective and deputy sheriff.
Autopsies on the three officers who were killed are pending. Barker said that he was not ready to commit to saying whether Ruth was killed by police or a self-inflicted gunshot wound. He said that following the exchange of fire with officers, he was deceased.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday also spoke during Thursday’s briefing. “I pray for the families who are dealing with unfathomable loss, and our hearts remain with the two families who received the call about their loves ones being seriously injured,” Sunday said.
Sunday said that he was part of the procession that transported the fallen officers to the York County Coroner’s Office. He said that he was moved by the amount of people who lined the streets to watch the procession go by.
York County Sheriff Richard Keuerleber said at Thursday’s briefing that the deputy sheriff who was wounded in Wednesday’s shooting is currently in surgery as of 4 p.m.
Northern York County Regional Chief David Lash said that the three detectives’ deaths are a stark reminder of the danger police put themselves in for their community. “They knowingly place themselves in harm’s way,” Lash said. “For that, we are forever indebted to them and their families.”
Barker, who at times got emotion during the press conference, said of the officers: “You ran the race. You fought more than a good fight. You fought the critical fight for us. Job well done. Mission well served. And we will love you forever and all eternity.”
Officials said that an official donation portal will be established shortly, to ensure that all donations go directly to the families.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said at an unrelated event in Allentown Thursday morning that the prognosis of the two wounded officers was good. “They’re expected to make a full recovery and expected to have a long road ahead,” Shapiro said.
RELATED: What we know about the person who shot five police officers in York County
Gov. Shapiro ordered all U.S. and Pennsylvania flags to be lowered to half-staff in honor of the fallen officers. The flags are to remain at half-staff until the three officers are interred.
NYCRPD officers lost in North Codorus Township shooting were part of several noteworthy cases during distinguished careers
Cody Becker, Mark Baker and Isaiah Emenheiser “embodied the courage, integrity and selflessness that defines what it means to be a police officer,” NYCRPD said.
Author: Keith Schweigert (FOX43)
Published: 7:21 PM EDT September 18, 2025
Updated: 7:21 PM EDT September 18, 2025
YORK, Pa. — The three Northern York County Regional Police officers killed in the line of duty Wednesday by gunman Matthew Ruth in North Codorus Township were hailed as heroes by District Attorney Tim Barker and Police Chief David Lash.
At a press conference Thursday, the law enforcement officials identified Detective Sgt. Cody Becker, Det. Mark Baker and Det. Isaiah Emenheiser as the three officers who lost their lives in the shooting at a home on Haar Road.
All three officers had long and noteworthy careers with the department.
“These officers were not just colleagues — they were pillars of Northern York County Regional Police Department and their community,” the police department said in a statement posted Thursday. “They embodied the courage, integrity and selflessness that define what it means to be a police officer.”
Becker was honored by the FBI for his efforts in saving four people from a burning apartment in 2010 and by the Pennsylvania DUI Association in 2013 for his efforts in keeping drunk drivers off the roads.
Baker was instrumental in the 2022 arrest and conviction of a registered sex offender in western New York for soliciting a 13-year-old York County girl he had met online into producing child pornography.
In 2015, Emenheiser arrested a suspect after a shootoutin Conewago Township. The suspect, Eduardo Manuel Portell-Llanos, was later found guilty of attempted homicide after shooting at his brother and at Emenheiser, who returned fire and subdued him.
Emenheiser was also lauded for his work in DUI enforcement by State Police, according to multiple reports.
All three served with NYCRPD with distinction, the police department said.
