Freeway shooting suspect who shot self in Fairfield I-80 standoff still in critical condition
Authorities on Tuesday said the shooting suspect who led police and CHP on a chase across the Bay Area, followed by an hours-long standoff on Interstate Highway 80 in Fairfield that ended with the man shooting himself, remains in critical condition.
The Solano County District Attorney's Office said in a press release Tuesday afternoon that the suspect involved in the May 3 has still not been identified. The release noted that he was "a 40-year-old male out of Rohnert Park" who allegedly shot out the window of an SUV on U.S. Highway 101 near Santa Rosa.
That shooting was what started the police chase across three Bay Area counties, leading officers from the North Bay across the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge and into the East Bay before ending in the standoff that snarled I-80 traffic for hours.
According to authorities, the driver sat with a gun in his lap as police surrounded his car. CHP initially said the man died from a self-inflicted gunshot, but later issued a correction that he had survived and was in the hospital in critically condition.
The release also noted that officers made every attempt to de-escalate the situation with the shooting suspect during the standoff.
"For over two hours, officers from the California Highway Patrol, Fairfield Police Department, and Solano County Sheriff's Office attempted to communicate with the driver by giving clear commands and utilizing different de-escalation techniques," the release said. "The driver refused to comply with any and all attempts made by law enforcement. The driver is currently in critical condition having suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound."
An independent investigation into the incident is being led by the Solano County Major Crimes task force "pursuant to the countywide officer-involved fatal incident protocol." The release noted that no additional details are being released about the incident "due to the nature of the ongoing investigation."
