By Esther Avila, The Porterville Recorder - 01/16/04

LINDSAY, CA - A man who stole a police cruiser was killed following a hail of gunfire Thursday just outside of town. The dead man may be a wanted murder suspect out of Stanislaus County.

A narcotic tip led detectives to a Terra Bella address at about 1:30 p.m. to check on a murder suspect that was said to have been at the undisclosed location, said Lt. Keith Douglass of the Tulare County Sheriff's Department. The man was wanted for a Nov. 22 slaying in Turlock.

Information obtained at the site led the officer to a south Lindsay home. While in the process of investigating the lead, a 911 call was received from the Tulare County Sheriff's Department dispatch. A vehicle had been carjacked at gunpoint, close to the residence, said Douglass. The stolen vehicle was abandoned in another Lindsay location. While officers were circling the area, a man believed to be the wanted murder suspect reportedly doubled back from behind a series of homes and stole a marked Lindsay police cruiser.

Douglass said a second Lindsay officer saw the stolen cruiser leave the scene and gave chase. He said the stolen cruiser was lost, but quickly found again by Lindsay and Sheriff's Department units.

The suspect drove down Tulare Avenue to Road 224 and then turned along the western bank of the Friant-Kern Canal and crossed over the canal on a small bridge.

"The chase ended with the suspect stuck in mud, just north on the foothills," Douglass said. "The ground is quite moist, the cruiser is heavy enough to get stuck."

Bob McDonald was visiting his brother, Tom McDonald, at a residence on Road 224 at the time.

"He came through here," said Bob McDonald, pointing to the side of the canal. "We were working in the shop when we heard tons of sirens and thought nothing of it. Then we saw the car go by real fast. We thought it was the police."

Howard Lewis Jr., who lives next to the canal, was also at the McDonald residence and said several law enforcement vehicles followed shortly thereafter.

"We pointed to where he went and next thing you know he's surrounded," Bob McDonald said. "It's kind of comical that someone is dumb enough to steal a police car."

Gunshots were fired, and officers hunkered down until the scene was secured.

"He fired and then they fired back," said Bob McDonald. "First we heard like three or four from him and then immediately about 100 shots were fired back from all over."

While everyone waited, a California Highway Patrol airplane circled the area, watching for movement from the vehicle until the Sheriff's Department SWAT team could arrive and secure the stolen cruiser.

"It was like five minutes of action," said Bob McDonald, "the rest has been sitting time. There is like 70 sheriff's officers up there."

Douglass estimated 30-35 officers worked the scene.

The stalled vehicle sat approximately half a mile away from the canal, on a hill, blue lights still flashing, for 1-1/2 hours until SWAT team members pronounced the area safe.

Multiple people have been detained for investigation at the Terra Bella and Lindsay residence sites, said Douglass.

"The suspect has sustained fatal wounds," he said.

Douglass said he could not confirm how many shots were fired, who fired the rounds, or if the suspect was in fact armed at the time of the shooting. He did say no officers were injured, and as of late Thursday night he had not heard any reports of civilian injures resulting from the cruiser theft, the subsequent chase, or the shooting.

Police could not confirm the dead man's identity at press time.

"What we're going to probably have to do is run his fingerprints to confirm his identity," Douglass said. "We don't know this guy, we'll have to fingerprint and ID and check to see if he's a wanted suspect."

"If he has ID - Simple," Douglass said.

Howard said the suspect may have had a better chance at escaping if he had gone a different way.

"The guy must have the will to want to die. If you're running, you don't run into their lap," he said. "There's a road that he could have taken but didn't - a farming road that goes back to the Strathmore road."

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