Sheriff: Marshfield man did not shoot at officers

A man who was shot multiple times by Marshfield police officers Sunday evening was holding his wife at gunpoint and threatening to kill her, according to the Webster County sheriff. The man turned his weapon on the officers when they entered his home but did not shoot, Sheriff Roye Cole said.

Cole, who is investigating the shooting, said the two police officers shot the man multiple times.

The officers were dispatched to the home in the 300 block of Banning Street after a report of a domestic disturbance.

The man, whom Cole would not identify, did not fire his shotgun, Cole said. Marshfield Police Chief Doug Fannen told the News-Leader on Monday that the man had fired at the officers.

According to Cole, the wife said her husband shot at officers.

"That did not happen," he said. "He never actually shot (his weapon)."

Cole said the man is being treated at Cox South hospital in Springfield. He is in stable condition but will have a "long recovery process," Cole said.

The man is facing a "host of charges," possibly including kidnapping, domestic assault, first-degree assault of a law enforcement officer and unlawful use of a weapon, Cole said. "If he survives, we will pursue those charges."

Cole would not say how many times the man was shot, citing the ongoing investigation.

The first 911 call about the disturbance came from a family member of the wife, Cole said. Dispatchers then called the home to check on the wife.

He said the man was born in 1966 and his name will only be released if the man is charged. Cole said the man has been involved in domestic disturbances before.

The man's wife said he drank "a whole bunch of whiskey" before officers arrived, Cole said.

The shooting is being investigated by the Webster County Sheriff's Office and the Missouri State Highway Patrol. The two Marshfield police officers involved in the shooting have been placed on paid administrative leave, as is routine in such investigations.

Cole said he did not want to name the officers involved. He did say they would return to work in about three weeks.

The Webster County Sheriff's Office is taking the lead in the investigation. Cole said investigators are waiting on lab reports to complete the investigation.

"There's not really too much question as to what happened," he said.

A man who lives across the street from where the shooting happened said he heard four shots fired.

Bobby Murphy said police were called to a home in his neighborhood after a man took a shotgun from a pickup truck and went in the house.

Murphy said the man had previously been yelling at a woman who also lives in the house.

Murphy said officers kicked in the door. He said he couldn't see the man.

"They were standing there shooting through the doorway," Murphy said of the police.

Fannen, the Marshfield police chief, has not identified the man who was shot or said what his injuries are.

He would not release a copy of the police report about the shooting.

Missouri open records law requires incident reports to be released.

There's a provision for redacting some information on those reports due to concern about the safety of a victim or witness or if a criminal investigation is likely to be jeopardized, but the reports are public record.