The scene on Highway 61 Wednesday afternoon following an officer-involved shooting near the DeSoto-Tunica County line. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
A man is dead after a pursuit involving the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Department near the DeSoto-Tunica County line Wednesday afternoon ended with an officer fatally shooting the subject.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has been called in to investigate the incident that took place on U.S. Highway 61, south of state Highway 3 in Lake Cormorant early Wednesday afternoon.
During the chase in the northbound lanes of Highway 61, deputies did a PIT maneuver on the subject’s vehicle in their attempt to stop the subject.
A PIT maneuver, also known as a Precision Immobilization Technique, involves forcing a fleeing vehicle to turn 180 degrees and stop. The maneuver is performed by applying lateral pressure to the rear quarter panel of the fleeing vehicle, causing it to spin out and stall. The goal is to force the vehicle to spin out so that officers can quickly surround and arrest the driver.
In this case, the vehicle did stop and deputies released a K9 which was shot by the subject. It was then deputies returned fire at the subject, who received fatal injuries. The K9 dog was taken to a veterinary hospital for treatment. However, the Mississippi Department of Public Safety identified the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Department K9 as Luca, and said Luca had died.
Today, we mourn the loss of Luca, a K-9 with the DeSoto County Sheriff's Department, who was killed in the line of duty.
Our thoughts & prayers go out to his handler & the entire department during this time.
Deputies had blocked access to the northbound lanes of Highway 61 from I-69/Highway 304 as the investigation was underway. The road was reopened to traffic late Wednesday afternoon.
Early Wednesday evening, DeSoto County Coroner Josh Pounders confirmed the victim’s identity as Jamarcus Brown. No information about the original circumstances for the chase have been released.
