The deputies assumed the vehicle was empty and approached, but then saw a man later identified as Brown hiding in the back seat, according to a Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.
FIRST REPORT: Dayton man killed in Harrison Twp. officer-involved shooting identified
The deputies ordered Brown to put his hands up and step out of the vehicle, but he jumped into the driver’s seat and attempted to flee, striking one of the deputies. According sheriff’s office that’s when the deputy fired at Brown, who then sped around a corner and onto Ontario Avenue.
Debbie Vaughn said the only tree on her property that survived the tornadoes may have saved her house from an impact by Brown’s vehicle she described as a red Dodge Durango.
“He didn’t hit the brakes for nothing. That’s why I knew something was wrong,” she said. “The car was going so fast.”
Vaughn watched as the vehicle shredded about 30 feet of fence in front of her Ontario Avenue house and climb a pine tree.
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She said the deputies with guns drawn pulled the suspect from the vehicle and began CPR.
“They started working on him. I heard one sheriff say, ‘Stay with me bud,’” Vaughn said. “It was very sad.”
Vaughn said she did not know the man near death on her yard but the ordeal shook her.
“I didn’t recognize him … Once they put the sheet on him I had to go into the ambulance myself. I was a mess,” she said. “I had some chest pains because it scared me so bad. It was awful; terrible.”
Both deputies involved were transported to Miami Valley Hospital for treatment and evaluation. They were both placed on administrative leave pending a review of the incident, according the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.
Further details about the investigation and the names of the deputies involved were not released Sunday. The cause and manner of Brown’s death had also not been finalized by a medical examiner Sunday afternoon, according to a corner’s office investigator.
Two fatal shootings involving area law enforcement occurred last October, including another of a fleeing motorist.
On Oct. 21, a fleeing suspect was fatally shot by an Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper Jason L. Whitner, 27, in Trotwood. Joseph Bernhard-William Kiser, 21, of Granville died after being wounded by Whitner. Kiser was shot after ignoring the trooper’s commands following a nine-minute pursuit, authorities said.
MORE: Police: Homicide suspect killed himself in officer-involved shooting
Erik Michael Evans, 32, died after shooting himself Oct. 29 while Dayton police officer Conner Matlock fired shots after seeing Evans’ weapon during a scene that unfolded within seconds at a Shell Station at Free Pike and North Gettysburg Avenue.
Just last week, a Tipp City officer fired at a bar patron who refused to drop a weapon after twice pointing a gun at the officer, police said. The woman was not hit by gunfire and officers found a toy gun at the scene that was painted black, according to Tipp City police. She was taken to an area hospital for evaluation.
MORE: Officer-involved shooting: 9-1-1 caller describes woman with gun at Tipp City bar
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