ST. JOSEPH, Mich. (AP) — Two bailiffs were shot and killed Monday inside a southwestern Michigan courthouse before officers killed the gunman, a sheriff said.
The incident occurred on the third floor of the Berrien County courthouse in St. Joseph, 100 miles northeast of Chicago.At 3:30 p.m., Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder tweeted that the incident scene had been secured by police.
MSP has secured the scene at the Berrien County courthouse and started its investigation into the shooting that occurred this afternoon.
— Governor Rick Snyder (@onetoughnerd) July 11, 2016
Sheriff Paul Bailey did not provide additional details on how the shooting happened. He said he did not know anything about the shooter, why he was in the courthouse or how he got a gun. A sheriff's deputy who was shot was in stable condition at a hospital, and a fifth person was injured, although how that person was hurt wasn't immediately clear.
"I stand here with a heavy heart. A person has shot two bailiffs. They're both deceased," Bailey told reporters.
Other people in the area of the shooting sought shelter before "brave officers were able to come to their rescue and take the shooter down," the sheriff said. He didn't elaborate.
Bailey said he felt "terrible" about the deaths.
Berrien County, which borders Indiana, is in the far southwestern corner of Michigan.
