Frein Placed in Dead Officer's Handcuffs

After a 48-day manhunt in the woods of northeast Pennsylvania, Eric Frein ended up being taken away in handcuffs used by the state trooper he's accused of shooting dead in an ambush last month. The fugitive, who was captured near an abandoned airport hangar yesterday, was put in the slain officer's squad car and taken to the same barracks where he allegedly ambushed the troopers, reports the AP, which notes that Frein's nose appeared swollen and he looked bloodied over one eye when he was taken from the barracks to a correctional facility early this morning. More:

• The local district attorney plans to seek the death penalty for the 31-year-old, who has been charged with crimes including first-degree murder and possession of weapons of mass destruction.

• Pennsylvania's police commissioner says Frein was "definitely surprised" when US marshals spotted him in a field near the hangar and ordered him to surrender, USA Today reports. "He gave up because he was caught and he had no choice but to give up," the commissioner told reporters, adding that Frein did not have a gun on his person when he was caught.
• Gov. Tom Corbett thanked residents of northeast Pennsylvania and the hundreds of law enforcement officers who took part in the search, which police say the survivalist and self-trained sniper treated as a game, the Los Angeles Times reports. "You have given your heart and soul in the name of justice," the governor said. "I can't think of a more dangerous occupation than going into the woods after this individual."
• Residents of the search area expressed their relief and gratitude after Frein's capture. "We all have children and we were afraid to go outside. We were afraid to do anything," a local woman tells WNEP. "So this is amazing. We were waiting for this day."
• Children in the area have another reason to be relieved: Authorities have reinstated Halloween.

(More Eric Frein stories.)