CHESTERTON- The Indiana State Police Criminal Investigations Section was requested by Chesterton Chief of Police Tim Richardson to investigate an officer-involved shooting that took place this morning. The following information was discussed at an earlier press conference.
This morning at approximately 8:00 am, the Chesterton Police Department was dispatched to the Hilton Garden Inn located at 501 Gateway Blvd in Chesterton to investigate a complaint about a suspicious person who had been in the hotel and was not a guest. When two officers arrived, they located the individual whom the hotel staff had reported. During the initial interaction, a confrontation occurred between the officers and the suspect. At some point during the altercation, the officers exchanged gunfire with the suspect, with one of the officers sustaining a gunshot injury. That officer was transported to a trauma hospital in Illinois for treatment of that injury. The suspect was declared deceased at the scene by the Porter County Coroner. No other officers or individuals were injured during the incident. The officer who suffered the gunshot injury has been released from the hospital and is expected to make a full recovery.
Indiana State Police Detectives and Crime Scene Investigators responded to the scene and, at the request of Chief Richardson, have initiated an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Once completed, those findings will be turned over to the Porter County Prosecutor for official review.
Notification to next of kin of the deceased has been made. Identification of the deceased will be released by the Porter County Coroner’s Office according to their policies. An autopsy will be conducted on Thursday to determine the cause of death. The Indiana State Police will not have any further comments or information to be released as this is an active investigation.
