COEUR d'ALENE - Two officer-involved shootings this month put slightly more than 15 percent of the Coeur d'Alene Police Department on paid administrative leave.

On Sunday morning alone, 14 law enforcement officers from four different agencies were placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting of Marcus A. Rael of Glendale, Ariz., is investigated.

Eight of those law enforcement officers were from the Coeur d'Alene Police Department. Six of the eight were directly involved in the shooting, according to Sgt. Christie Wood.

"Still, everyone who responded must be placed on leave," she said, adding that some of the officers will return as soon as they are deemed fit for duty.

Combine that with three officers who were placed on paid administrative leave for a separate officer-involved shooting June 6 in the 400 block of Dragonfly Drive, and the CPD is down 11 officers in its 72 officer force.

"We have 72 sworn officers and that includes all of the administration, so obviously not all are assigned to patrol," Wood said. "But we pull officers from other assignments such as detectives or CARE in the case of critical incidents."

Post Falls Police Department had three officers placed on leave after the Sunday morning shooting on Interstate 90, according to police Chief Scot Haug.

All three were involved in the shootout.

"Dealing with that is a challenge for any department like ours," he said, adding that those who remain on duty will have to pull overtime to cover those shifts. "We will also have to reassign some officers to work patrol."

Haug said his officers could be on leave for months as the investigation of the I-90 incident will likely take quite some time.

"You've got a lot of officers involved and a lot of evidence to process," he said. "It's not uncommon for these to take several months to resolve."

Haug said the paid administrative leave is necessary to ensure that officers are mentally and physically fit to return to duty.

"There is this perception out there among some people that this is just another shooting," he said. "For a law enforcement perspective, this is a really big deal. It can be an overwhelming experience for all of those involved."

The Kootenai County Sheriff's Office put two of its deputies on paid administrative leave following the I-90 incident, and they were directly involved in the shooting as well.

Idaho State Police also had one trooper involved in the I-90 shooting, and that trooper has been placed on paid administrative leave.

ISP spokeswoman Teresa Baker said that is the only District 1 trooper on paid leave at this time.

She said the trooper could be placed on duty as soon as he or she is deemed fit for duty as well.

Wood said Coeur d'Alene's process for returning an officer to duty is the same as the other agencies.

The names of the officers involved in the I-90 shooting will be released at a later date.