Investigation underway following officer-involved shooting; police identify one in custody

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- One man is in custody at the Buchanan County Jail following a deadly police pursuit on Thursday.

According to a release from the St. Joseph Police Department, 29-year-old Dominick Hearn of St. Joseph has been identified as an occupant of the stolen vehicle involved in the incident.

He is being held in the Buchanan County Jail on a federal warrant and charges are pending, police said.

According to officials, an investigation into the incident could take several months to complete, but authorities say they are working to make it thorough. 

Another man who was in the stolen vehicle was pronounced dead Thursday following what officials said was an armed carjacking that led to a police pursuit in St. Joseph. Police are not releasing the name of the deceased man at this time.

The carjacking took place at about 10:30 a.m. at Sixth and Hall streets just north of Downtown. Police located the vehicle about a half hour later, several blocks north at St. Joseph and Highland avenues. When officers attempted to stop the vehicle, the driver sped away and shots were fired at officers from the car during a chase that moved south into the Downtown area past City Hall and finally stopped about 15 minutes later when the stolen vehicle crashed near 28th and Mitchell.

One person was taken into custody while the other ran to the 2500 block of Penn Street, where the officer-involved shooting occurred.

The man who was shot later was pronounced dead at the hospital.

In a statement, officials with the St. Joseph Police Department said Friday that no further details regarding the incident will be released by the agency at this point. The Missouri State Highway Patrol is heading an investigation into the shooting as is standard protocol.

Officials with the Missouri State Highway Patrol told News-Press NOW on Friday that there are several variables surrounding the investigation, and they aren’t expecting any results from the crime lab for 8 to 12 weeks.   

The results of this investigation could come sooner than expected or take longer due to various factors, including the type of offense and the need to gather sufficient evidence. 

News-Press Now will continue following this case and provide updates when they become available.