A 32-year-old Jackson man died early Thursday after a police pursuit ended on Interstate 41 in Washington County, authorities said. The chase began after a deputy spotted the man's vehicle traveling southbound on I-41 near Holy Hill Road at about 12:11 a.m., and it ended with a PIT maneuver, a single gunshot, and two firearms recovered from inside the car.
According to dailydodge.com, the vehicle had previously been involved in a pursuit with the Slinger Police Department before the Washington County deputy located it. Authorities believed the driver may have been armed and was the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation in the village of Jackson, per a media statement from Washington County Sheriff Martin R. Schulteis released Thursday afternoon.
The vehicle continued southbound before turning northbound just south of Lannon Road, the same report states. The deputy then initiated a low-speed pursuit, and the Germantown Police Department was requested to assist with a pursuit intervention technique maneuver, according to Washington County Insider.
Reckless Driving Ends With a PIT Maneuver on I-41
The driver continued operating the vehicle recklessly until officers conducted a successful PIT maneuver on I-41 approximately 0.2 miles north of Mequon Road, Washington County Insider reported. The vehicle then entered the east side of the roadway and came to a stop, the same outlet noted.
Once the car stopped, deputies and officers heard a single gunshot determined to have come from a non-law-enforcement firearm. Officers then found the driver deceased from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, per the sheriff's office statement relayed by the station's report. Two firearms were found inside the vehicle, and the man was pronounced dead at the scene.
Multi-Agency Team Takes Over the Investigation
The East Central Wisconsin Sheriff's Investigative Team was requested to investigate the incident, with the Sheboygan County Sheriff's Office serving as the lead agency in cooperation with the Washington County Medical Examiner's Office, the same account states. The multi-jurisdictional team includes members from the Fond du Lac, Manitowoc, Ozaukee, Sheboygan and Washington County sheriff's offices, which the Washington County Sheriff's Office described as a unit formed to conduct accurate, objective, transparent, timely, and professional investigations of major incidents, including officer-involved critical incidents.
The Washington County Sheriff's Office thanked the public-safety agencies that assisted during the incident, naming the East Central Wisconsin Sheriff's Investigative Team, Germantown fire and police departments, the Jackson Police Department, the Slinger Police Department, and the Wisconsin State Patrol. The office said the statement represented the only initial information available at the time, and that the Sheboygan County Sheriff's Office may release additional information at a later time.
