ST. LOUIS — A St. Louis police officer shot and injured a man who pointed a gun at officers while trying to run away from a crash, the department said Thursday.
The shooting happened on Dr. Martin Luther King Drive near Burd Avenue near the city's Wells-Goodfellow and Hamilton Heights neighborhoods.
In a press conference, Lt. Col. Michael Sack said officers spotted a stolen vehicle at around 11:45 a.m. When they tried to get the car to stop, it sped away. Police were able to deploy spike strips under the car as it pulled away.
Sack said while officers were chasing the car, the car tried to turn around but ended up hitting two other cars.
According to a police report, a passenger in the car got out holding a semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine and ran around the front of the car. Police said the man turned toward the officer while still holding the pistol and ignored several commands to drop the weapon.
The officer, a 36-year-old with six years of service, fired one round that struck the man in the thigh. Officers applied multiple tourniquets and dressed the wound before paramedics arrived, the department said. He was taken to a hospital, where he was listed in critical, stable condition as of Thursday evening.
Another man who was inside the stolen car was also taken to the hospital for treatment.
A woman and a child were in one of the cars that was struck by the fleeing vehicle. They were treated by paramedics on the scene and are OK, Sack said.
Two men and one woman were in the other car that was struck by the stolen car. According to Sack, they were all being treated at the hospital for their injuries.
When Sack spoke to the media, he talked about how scary it was for the innocent drivers to be caught up in the incident.
"They really had nowhere to go. I commend both drivers, they didn't panic. It looks like neither one of them hit the gas, they both veered to get out of the way, which is probably the best thing you can do in this circumstance," he said.
Sack said no officers were injured.
Sack said the suspect had a semi-automatic pistol with an extended magazine. This is something, he said, police are seeing more of with suspects.
"Unfortunately, we're seeing a lot more cases where offenders are using firearms with extended magazine. A pistol might have 10, 14 rounds in it, but you could put an extended magazine and go up to 33," he said.
The department's Force Investigation Unit has been requested to investigate the incident.
An internal police message shared with 5 On Your Side said the man shot at officers, but at the press conference, Sack said the man pointed a gun at officers.
Dr. Martin Luther King Drive was closed at 1 p.m. due to the investigation. Officers have not released an estimated reopening time.
This breaking news story will be updated when more information becomes available.
To watch 5 On Your Side broadcasts or reports 24/7, 5 On Your Side is always streaming on 5+. Download for free on Roku, Amazon Fire TV or the Apple TV app store.
St. Louis top headlines
Get the latest news and details throughout the St. Louis area from 5 On Your Side broadcasts here.