SIIR Team Investigating Deputy-Involved Shooting in North Spokane County
This evening, a Deputy conducting a prowl check at the request of the property owner was involved in a shooting. Earlier in the day, the property owners had requested the prowl checks after reporting the theft of several items from the location. The property owner does not live at the location.
Unbeknownst to the Deputy, or the Sheriff’s Office, the property owner, who was armed, returned to the property to make sure his property was secure from future burglaries/thefts. The property owner confronted the Deputy, and shortly after, the Deputy reported shots had been fired.
The Deputy provided emergency medical aid, and the adult male property owner was transported to the hospital with a gunshot wound.
No uninvolved citizens or Deputies were injured during this incident. The Spokane Independent Investigative Response (SIIR) Team is investigating.
On March 7, 2021, earlier in the morning, Crime Check received a report from the property owner that suspect(s) had stolen a winch, tools, and other items from the property. The theft was estimated to have occurred sometime after March 6th, 10:00 am. and the morning of March 7, 2021. The victim further explained numerous additional items were pulled from under tarps and set aside, leading the victim to believe the suspect(s) planned to return to steal more property. The property owner made a request to have extra patrols by Deputies throughout the night.
At approximately 7:11 pm., a Deputy arrived at the property located in the 6500 block of E. Grouse Rd. in Chattaroy. Approximately 3 minutes later, the Deputy reported shots had been fired.
Initial information indicates the property owner decided to return to the property and stay there to secure his property. This information had not been reported to the Sheriff’s Office and was not known by the Deputy who responded to check the property for prowlers.
The property owner, who was armed, confronted the Deputy, who was under the impression no one was at the location. The Deputy, who was alone, replied, and shortly after, he reported shots had been fired.
The Deputy provided emergency medical aid for a gunshot wound until Fire Department and AMR personnel arrived. The male was transported to the hospital for additional treatment.
As per standard protocol, the Deputy who fired was placed on administrative leave.
The Officer-Involved Protocol was enacted. The SIIR Team is on-scene investigating the incident and processing the scene. The SIIR Team is comprised of multiple agencies in eastern Washington, including the Spokane Police Department, the Washington State Patrol, Liberty Lake Police Department, Airway Heights Police Department, and the Spokane County Sheriff's Office.
- The Spokane Police Department is the managing agency in this incident. All future communications regarding this incident will be sent via the SIIR Team.
- The Spokane County Sheriff's Office will release the name of the Deputy involved in this incident.
Once the SIIR Team investigation is complete, the case will be forwarded to the Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office for review.