JEFFERSONVILLE, Ind.
— UPDATE @ 12:20 a.m. (Dec. 13): Indiana State Patrol Trooper Morgenn Evans stopped a gray pickup truck just east of downtown Jeffersonville on a traffic infraction, ISP PIO Sgt. Jerry Goodin said on the latest about the trooper's shooting.
Oscar Kays, 79, of Jeffersonville and the driver of that gray 1999 Silverado, became combative, pulled a handgun and fired at Evans. Evans was struck in the head but was able to return fire at Kays, who was fleeing.
Evans got back to his police car and gave chase a short distance but Kays returned to his home. He was apprehended there by Jeffersonville City police and the Clark County Sheriff’s deputies.
Investigators don’t yet know if Evans's shots wounded Kays or if Kays was wounded by his own gun or debris from the shots fired.
Oscar Kays (Courtesy/Indiana State Police, Clark County Jail)
Kays, now in the Clark County Jail, is charged with attempted murder of a police officer.
Evans, a trooper since October 2016, suffered non-life threatening injuries.
UPDATE @ 10:10 p.m.:
Both the Indiana State Police trooper and the suspect were wounded in an exchange of gunfire during a traffic stop just east of downtown Jeffersonville, in southern Indiana, ISP Sellersburg District PIO Sgt. Jerry Goodin said.
The trooper's condition is non-life threatening, "which is very good news for us," Goodin said at a media briefing near the scene. The trooper's name and age are not being released right now.
Both he and the suspect, whose name and age also have not been released, are at University of Louisville Hospital.
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We're hearing the trooper may have suffered a grazing head wound. Goodin would not disclose where or how many times the suspect may have been hit. He had no information on the suspect's condition.
Goodin said he could not say any more than there was an exchange of gunfire and an altercation that occurred during the traffic stop. He said he couldn't yet discuss what led to the stop.
The trooper called Jeffersonville police for help because things went awry at the stop, Goodin said.
The investigation is continuing in three locations related to the incident, Goodin said, and there was no reason for citizens to fear that any other people may have been involved.
"Keep out trooper in your prayers and hopefully the prognosis we had early on continues to be for both the trooper and the suspect that was shot also," he said.
INITIAL REPORT
An Indiana State Police trooper, shot in the head tonight while pursuing a suspect just east of downtown Jeffersonville, Ind., is at a hospital and the trooper's condition is not known.
Several news outlets in Indiana are reporting that the shooting occurred about 7 p.m. in Clark County. Jeffersonville is located just across the Ohio River from Louisville, Ky.
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ISP officials are confirming the trooper is out of the state patrol’s Sellersburg District, in the southern part of Indiana.
Police shut down roads to escort the officer to University Hospital.
We will update this developing report. Stay with whio.com for breaking news.
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