Snohomish County officers to probe Wenatchee shooting
Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, June 6, 2001
Associated Press and Herald staff
EAST WENATCHEE — Snohomish County sheriff’s detectives are being called in to investigate the shooting of a prominent Wenatchee businessman by an off-duty Douglas County sheriff’s deputy.
The incident began about 2 a.m. Saturday when Douglas County deputies responded to a report of a prowler but were unable to locate anyone. Two hours later, a different resident in the same area called 911 and reported someone trying to enter their home, Snohomish County sheriff’s spokeswoman Jan Jorgensen said.
The complainant told dispatchers that an off-duty deputy who was visiting the home had gone outside to check the residence and found someone hiding in the bushes. The deputy ordered the person to come out of the bushes and get on the ground, Jorgensen said.
The person ran out of the bushes at the deputy, who fired once with his personal handgun, authorities said. The man who had been hiding flinched and then fled.
The man, an official of a Wenatchee insurance company, reportedly drove himself to Redmond for an insurance conference on Sunday, but asked a hotel desk clerk early Monday to call an ambulance, police said. The clerk called 911 and reported that a man who had been shot needed an ambulance. He was taken to Overlake Hospital in Bellevue.
The deputy was placed on administrative leave, pending an investigation by Snohomish detectives.
Douglas County Sheriff Daniel LaRoche asked Snohomish County to investigate. A sergeant and two detectives have been assigned to the case, Jorgensen said. Investigators have more interviews to complete, and have sent evidence to the state crime laboratory, she said. When completed, the investigation results will be turned over to Douglas County.
"This is being handled just as any officer-related shooting would be. It is common for any police agency to ask another agency to investigate," Jorgensen said.
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