Officer shot in head, suspect killed in domestic violence call, police chief says

WARREN COUNTY, Ohio (WXIX/Gray News) - A police officer in Ohio was critically injured in a shooting earlier this week while responding to a domestic violence call.

According to Clearcreek Township Chief of Police John Terrill, two officers responded to a reported domestic violence situation at a residence where a man was ramming his wife’s car with an ATV.

WXIX reports the man shot one of the responding officers in the head before he was shot and killed by the other officer.

The wounded officer was transported by helicopter to a hospital and was reportedly breathing on his own after the shooting.

Terrill described the officer as being in “stable but critical condition.” Later, about the officer, Terrill said, “We’re not quite sure how this is going to turn out yet.”

The chief of police declined to identify the injured officer but did say he is a 14-year veteran of the force.

Officials said the officer who shot and killed the man was not injured.

According to the police chief, the department responded to multiple domestic violence calls at the same address in the past.

“An officer-involved lethal use of force incident, when it results in a death, is a tragedy regardless of whether the officer’s actions ultimately end up being justified,” David Fornshell said, Warren County Prosecutor.

Officials said the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations will handle evidence collection and conduct interviews as part of the investigation.

According to Terrill, Tuesday’s incident was the first officer-involved shooting in the 47-year history of the Clearcreek Township Police Department.

Copyright 2022 WXIX via Gray Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved.