3 wounded in shooting at rural Idaho sheriff's office, officials say; suspect killed
Three people were wounded, including an officer, when a gunman opened fire Friday afternoon at the headquarters of a sheriff's office in rural northwest Idaho, authorities said. The suspect was later fatally shot by law enforcement inside the building.
The incident unfolded at about 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time outside the headquarters of the Shoshone County Sheriff's Office in Wallace, Idaho, Shoshone County Sheriff William Eddy said in a Friday night news conference.
Eddy said the suspect shot two women who were sitting in a pickup truck outside the building.
"Two ladies got shot, they were sitting in a pickup," Eddy said. "The guy shot through the windshield, and it struck a lady in the leg in the front seat, and a lady in the leg in the backseat."
At some point, the suspect "entered the sheriff's office lobby and began firing," Eddy said.
One officer was struck in the ear by the gunfire, but it was unclear if he was inside the building at the time. All three victims sustained minor injuries, the sheriff disclosed.
"He just walked in," Eddy told reporters. "...The lobby is always open so people can walk in and fill out reports, or make contact with dispatch, or get ahold of us."
Several local and federal law enforcement agencies responded, including the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service. The suspect was shot and killed by officers in the lobby area, Eddy said. He was pronounced dead at 4:15 p.m.
The sheriff indicated that no one was held hostage during the incident. The suspect, whose name was not released, was armed with multiple firearms, Eddy said. He declined to provide a possible motive for the shooting.
Wallace is located about 45 miles southeast of Coeur d'Alene, which is located near the Idaho-Washington border.