Two officers on leave after police shooting in St. Joseph leaves man dead
Editor’s note: this story was updated Sunday to correct whether it’s been determined that the man who was shot was the subject of the arrest warrant.
Two St. Joseph police officers are on leave and the Missouri State Highway Patrol is investigating after an officer-involved shooting Saturday morning left a man dead.
Capt. Jeff Wilson of the St. Joseph Police Department said the shooting occurred at a house near the middle of the city about two blocks away from the Patee House Museum and Jesse James Home.
“Officers were executing an arrest warrant, during which time they encountered a subject with a firearm,” Wilson said. “That subject was shot and transported to the hospital where he was later pronounced dead.”
Wilson said the person who died was a white male.
He said no further information about the man would be made available Saturday, including whether he was the subject of the arrest warrant.
Wilson said three officers were in the house at the time of the shooting, but one would not be placed on leave. He did not say who the officers were or how many guns were fired.
“Those are all matters for the investigation,” Wilson said.
The state highway patrol will take the lead in that investigation, Wilson said, per St. Joseph Police Department policy.
A representative of the highway patrol’s St. Joseph troop confirmed that the state agency is investigating, but said it had no available information Saturday.
The last officer-involved shooting in St. Joseph was in February 2017, when motorist Jason Fanning was killed during a traffic stop. According to the St. Joseph News-Press, Fanning’s family agreed last month to a $450,000 wrongful death settlement from the officer, Justin Bever, and his insurance company.
This story was originally published December 29, 2018 at 2:46 PM.
