Man shoots himself after crashing during law enforcement pursuit

A man who shot at a sheriff’s deputy and then crashed his car while trying to flee law enforcement officers shot himself to death in central Kansas Thursday afternoon, authorities said.

The incident began at about 12:45 p.m. Thursday, when a Kansas Highway Patrol trooper attempted to stop a maroon Chevy Impala for speeding on U.S. 56 in Edwards County, according to an account released by the highway patrol. The Impala sped up and a pursuit began.

About three miles into the chase, the driver began shooting out of his window at the trooper. The pursuit continued into the town of Garfield, where the suspect shot at and hit a Pawnee County Sheriff’s Department patrol car.

Nine minutes after the chase began, a Pawnee County deputy attempted to intervene at about Milepost 172. But the patrol car went into the east ditch and rolled, trapping the deputy. The suspect’s vehicle went into the west ditch and became disabled.

The suspect then put a gun to his own head. The woman in the passenger’s seat climbed out of the Impala and was taken into custody.

Officers on the scene were able to extricate the injured deputy and provide medical care. Although officers on the scene attempted to defuse the situation by talking to the suspect, he shot himself shortly before 1:30 p.m.

He was taken by ambulance to Pawnee Valley Community Hospital, where he died. The highway patrol is still attempting to identify him.

The injured deputy has been hospitalized in stable condition. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation has been called in to investigate the incident.

This story was originally published August 17, 2017 at 8:49 PM with the headline "Man shoots himself after crashing during law enforcement pursuit."