CATAWBA COUNTY, N.C. — A man was shot and killed early Tuesday morning after a standoff with the Catawba County Sheriff's Office, the sheriff's office confirmed.
Deputies first responded to a home at Rifle Range Road around 8:40 p.m. on Monday after a report that person was threatening suicide at the home. When deputies arrived, they found an armed man, who wouldn't speak with deputies and threatened taking his own life, CCSO said.
Deputies were able to help an elderly woman safely leave the home during this time.
The Special Tactics and Response (STAR) team as well as the Crisis Intervention and De-escalation team responded to help deputies make contact with the man, identified as Michael Rose. Around 9:30 p.m., an involuntary commitment order was issued to allow deputies to take Rose to a hospital.
Officials kept trying to contact Rose until around 1 a.m. Tuesday, when STAR team members heard what was believed to be a gunshot, and smoke coming from the home. The team entered the home to try and rescue Rose, at which point the sheriff's office said Rose fired a gun at STAR team members, who then fired back.
Rose was killed during this exchange.
The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation is investigating the shooting, which is standard protocol for officer-involved shootings. The sheriff's office did not say if anyone else was injured in the incident.
This is at least the fourth time in six months that there has been an officer-involved shooting in Catawba County.
In late May, a man who shot a woman in Newton and then allegedly fired at first responders treating the woman was shot and killed by Newton Police. Then on July 8, a man who allegedly fired at officers was seriously hurt after he was shot by a Newton Police officer, the police department said. On July 22, a man was shot and killed while attempting to crash into officers with a Catawba County tactics team, the Catawba County Sheriff's Office said.
The Catawba County Sheriff's Office said they are "fully cooperating" with the state investigation into the Rifle Range Road shooting.
If you or a loved one are facing thoughts of suicide or self-harm, there is help readily available. You can call Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or chat with them online. There are also resources in North Carolina available here and in South Carolina available here.
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