Eddyville, Ky. • A Kentucky state trooper was killed in a shooting during a chase, and officers shot and killed the suspect when he refused to drop his weapon after an hourslong manhunt, police said Monday.
Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder, who was 31 and had been on the force less than a year, was conducting a traffic stop Sunday night on Interstate 24 when the driver fled, Kentucky State Police said.
A chase ensued with the suspect stopping abruptly, causing the trooper's vehicle to "make contact" with the rear of the suspect's vehicle, said Trooper Jay Thomas, a state police spokesman.
"At that point, the suspect leaned out of the driver-side window and fired multiple rounds at the trooper's car, striking the hood, the windshield and striking our trooper," Thomas said.
Ponder was hit multiple times and was taken to a hospital where he died shortly before midnight.
The suspect, Joseph Thomas Johnson-Shanks, 25, of Florissant, Missouri, ran away and was found hours later in a rural, wooded area a couple of miles from the shooting, Thomas said. Johnson-Shanks refused to drop his weapon and was shot by officers. He later died at a hospital, Thomas said. Ponder was single and a Navy veteran.
"He was very proud to be a Kentucky State trooper," Thomas said.
This undated photo provided by the Kentucky State Police shows Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder. Ponder, who had been on the force less than a year was killed, late Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015, in a shooting during a car chase on Interstate 24, in Kentucky. Authorities are searching for the suspect. (Courtesy of the Kentucky State Police via AP)
This undated photo provided by the Kentucky State Police shows Joseph Thomas Johnson-Shanks. Johnson-Shanks is the suspect in the killing of a Kentucky State Trooper during a car chase, late Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015, along Interstate 24, in Kentucky. (Courtesy of the Kentucky State Police via AP)
This undated photo provided by the Kentucky State Police shows Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder. Ponder, who had been on the force less than a year was killed, late Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015, in a shooting during a car chase on Interstate 24, in Kentucky. Authorities are searching for the suspect. (Courtesy of the Kentucky State Police via AP)
This undated photo provided by the Kentucky State Police shows Joseph Thomas Johnson-Shanks. Johnson-Shanks is the suspect in the killing of a Kentucky State Trooper during a car chase, late Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015, along Interstate 24, in Kentucky. (Courtesy of the Kentucky State Police via AP)
Kentucky State Police Trooper Jay Thomas discusses the death of fellow KSP Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder on Monday, Sept. 14 near Eddyville, Ky. Police said Ponder was killed in a shooting during a chase late Sunday night in western Kentucky. (AP Photo/Bruce Schreiner)
Kentucky State Police Trooper Jay Thomas discusses the death of fellow KSP Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder on Monday, Sept. 14 near Eddyville, Ky. Police said Ponder was killed in a shooting during a chase late Sunday night in western Kentucky. (AP Photo/Bruce Schreiner)
