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Police forces cover the car of Montana State Wade Palmer on the scene of the shooting near Evaro Bar on Friday, March 15, 2019, in Missoula, Mt. Palmer, who was investigating a previous shooting, was himself shot and wounded last Friday after he discovered the suspect's vehicle, prompting authorities to launch a manhunt that would have resulted in the shooting. arrest of a 29-year-old man, officials said. (Tommy Martino / The Missoulian via AP)
MISSOULA, Mont. – A Montana road patrol soldier who was investigating a shootout that killed one person and injured two others was himself shot and wounded on Friday after finding the suspect's vehicle, officials said. Authorities subsequently arrested a 29-year-old suspect.
Private Wade Palmer, 35, was among the officers looking for the driver of a Cadillac Escalade. He lit his headlights in front of a van in front of him, then opened fire on the occupants of the van when he stopped Thursday night in Missoula, according to the loading documents.
The bullets hit Casey Blanchard and Shelley Hayes, as well as Blanchard's mother, Julie, who went to a Missoula bar to pick up her friends, investigators Julie Blanchard said. Authorities found Hayes dead in the back seat of the truck. Casey Blanchard had been hit several times but was aware and Julie Blanchard had also been touched and was aware, according to the court documents.
Julie Blanchard stated that the Cadillac had followed them to the bar and that she had stopped thinking that the driver might need help, according to the prosecution documents filed by the Attorney General of Missoula County, Jason Marks. Investigators said that two handguns had appeared and that an "AR-15 rifle" had been used during the shooting.
A little over an hour after filming, Palmer found climbing on American Highway 93, near a bar in the small town of Evaro, about 16 km away. Marks writes that Palmer informed dispatchers that he was under fire and that he did not answer the radio.
Another soldier arrived and found Palmer injured and still caught in his patrol car, according to a statement by Montana Highway Patrol officials. The shooter had run away.
Police closed US Highway 93, urged residents to lock their doors, and spent hours searching before arresting Johnathan Bertsch at approximately 6:15 am, charged with willful homicide and three counts of attempted murder. voluntary homicide.
He was detained at the Missoula County Detention Center and it was unclear whether he had a lawyer. He is scheduled to appear in court on Monday, said Marks.
Palmer was first taken to a Missoula hospital, where he had been reported to be in critical condition. Dozens of patrol cars gathered in the hospital parking lot as officers from various law enforcement agencies gathered to pay tribute to their members. They then joined a motorcade that accompanied Palmer to the airport to be transferred to a Salt Lake City hospital.
The authorities found Bertsch with the help of his father, Burton Bertsch, who said his son had called to tell him: "I had a road rage incident … I think I might have shot a cop, "according to the prosecution documents. .
The authorities spoke to Johnathan Bertsch using Burton's phone, but he refused to tell the police where he was. They found it after someone called 911 to report the Cadillac parked at the bottom of the driveway, along a road near the bar, according to documents.
Palmer is a body soldier since 2012. He has a wife and two children. He won the highest honor awarded to the police, the Medal of Valor, in 2015.
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