4-Year-Old Killed, Officer Wounded In Shootout Near Western PA

ST. CLAIR TOWNSHIP, OHIO — A 4-year-old child died and a police offer was shot in the head in a shootout with a suspect Wednesday in this small municipality in Columbiana County next to Beaver County in Pennsylvania.

The officer who was shot had surgery in a Pittsburgh hospital and was in stable condition, according to a St. Clair Township police Facebook post Wednesday evening.

According to an earlier Facebook post, St. Clair police were notified about a possibly suicidal man shortly after 2 p.m. Officers found the man walking down the street and attempted to talk to him.

Almost immediately, the man opened fire. Officers returned fire, hitting the suspect. During the shootout, the unidentified officer was shot and the 4-year-old was struck by a bullet while at a nearby private business.

The suspect, identified as Joseph Como, died from his injuries.

“We’re trying to gather information as fast as we can so we can update the community,” St. Clair Township Police Chief Brian McKenzie said. “Right now, we need the community to pray for our officer and the child who were shot.”

St. Clair Township Police Chief Brian McKenzie has contacted the Ohio Bureau of Investigation (BCI) and asked them to conduct an independent investigation.