Suspect dies in Pierce County deputy-involved shooting
Jul 16, 2024, 11:44 AM | Updated: 2:19 pm
A suspect died after they fired at Pierce County deputies. (Photo courtesy of James Lynch, KIRO Newsradio)
(Photo courtesy of James Lynch, KIRO Newsradio)
The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department (PCSD) reported a shooting involving an officer took place on Monday in Spanaway.
“All officers are OK,” wrote an X post at 4 p.m. on Monday.
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Pierce County Sheriff’s Department had an officer involved shooting at the 26000 block of 70th Ave. E. All Officers are OK. Media will be available at the 25800 block of 70th Ave. E. pic.twitter.com/QJ0B6Gs5EK
— Pierce Co Sheriff (@PierceSheriff) July 15, 2024
PCSD reported deputies tried to approach a person of interest from a previous crime. The suspect was driving on Mt. Highway East. Deputies tried to use stop sticks but the suspect drove off in their car.
“They tried to use stop sticks to get him to pull over and stop but he swerved at and hit a deputy,” PCSD Sgt. Darren Moss, Jr. told KIRO Newsradio on Tuesday. “That deputy sustained minor injuries.”
During the pursuit that followed, Moss said the man opened fire on deputies.
“It’s crazy to see this,” Moss said. “I’ve been the PIO (Public Information Officer) for four years now, and it seems like people are becoming more violent toward us.”
Deputies then chased the suspect eastbound on 260th Street East. Deputies eventually caught up with the man in Graham. They said he abandoned his car and fled on foot. He ran into the garage of a home and as deputies pursued, he opened fire again.
Shooting.
On July 15th at 2:45pm, officer’s attempted to make contact with a person of interest from a previous crime in a vehicle. Deputies reported shots fired and a pursuit followed.
Visit the Pierce County Sheriff’s Blotter for full story. https://t.co/qCN8ZkcT7m pic.twitter.com/8r7TX5kvcv
— Pierce Co Sheriff (@PierceSheriff) July 16, 2024
“No deputies were injured during that shooting, but the suspect was hit,” Moss said. “They attempted life-saving measures, but he died at the scene.”
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The Pierce County Force Investigation team took over the investigation and is trying to piece together what happened. Moss said unfortunately they are seeing more violent confrontations between suspects and police.
“We have a lot of shootings where they are a homicide suspect or violent crime suspects, they often have warrants for their arrest and they choose not to be compliant,” Moss said. “We can use tactics, we can try to de-escalate as much as we can, but if that person decides he doesn’t want to, and they want to use their gun against us, we have to respond accordingly.”
The deceased has not yet been identified.
This story was originally published on July 15 at 4:12 p.m., it has been updated and republished since then.
Julia Dallas is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read her stories here. Follow Julia on X here and email her here.
James Lynch is a reporter at KIRO Newsradio. You can read more of James’ stories here. Follow James on X, or email him here.
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