Suspect on deadly rampage killed in shootout with Louisiana deputies

BATON ROUGE, La. – Authorities in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, says a man who fatally shot a woman and ran over two bystanders with his car before crashing into an ambulance died following a shootout with sheriff's deputies.

Maj. Bryan White, chief of detectives for the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Department, told The Advocate that the unidentified 48-year-old man fired at deputies Sunday night when they demanded he show his hands. They shot the man, who fled into a wooded area near Interstate 10. He was captured and died en route to the hospital.

No law enforcement officers were injured in the shootout with the suspect, said sheriff's office spokeswoman Casey Hicks.

White says that earlier Sunday evening the man fatally shot the woman and threw her out of a car. He said deputies were making their way to the scene when a handful of passers-by — including a local physician and a 17-year-old training to be an emergency medical technician — stopped to help the woman.

But then the shooter returned, White said, running over two of the by-standers, including the 17-year-old, before stepping from his vehicle and opening fire, wounding one. The gunman then drove off, crashing into an ambulance as he fled.

District Attorney Hillar Moore III described the woman slain as in her 30s and said she knew her killer.

Authorities said her name and the name of the gunman are being withheld until next-of-kin are notified.

Under a standing agreement with the sheriff's office, the Louisiana State Police will investigate the shooting of the suspect.

State Police Superintendent Col. Mike Edmonson said a final report will be turned over to Moore, whose office will determine whether the shooting was legally justified.