A suspect was shot early Wednesday morning by Marion County Sheriff’s Office deputies after a deputy was struck by a vehicle by a man fleeing a safety checkpoint.
Sheriff Berkley Hall said the suspect, Stephen Kitchens, 31, of Columbia, was in stable condition at Forrest General Hospital in Hattiesburg with non-life threatening injuries and was charged with two counts of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, felony fleeing, disorderly conduct, failure to comply, providing false information to law enforcement, no driver’s license and possession of paraphernalia. He was booked into the Marion County jail Thursday afternoon.
Hall said the incident began shortly after midnight with a safety checkpoint at the intersection of Mississippi 586 and Mississippi 587 in Foxworth.
“A vehicle came up to the checkpoint and deputies began to investigate the stop because the driver could not produce a valid license,” Hall said. “After a short interview, deputies asked the driver to step out of the vehicle. The driver refused and fled from the checkpoint, resulting in a vehicle pursuit.”
According to Hall, the vehicle stopped at the intersection of U.S. 98 and Mississippi 35 and deputies again attempted to take him into custody.
“Again, he refused to exit the vehicle, a physical altercation began and the suspect was tased,” he said. “The suspect was armed with a knife and unphased by deputies’ attempts in apprehending him and struck a deputy with his vehicle as he attempted to flee again from officers. Because of the threat to life, a deputy fired shots to attempt to neutralize the threat, striking the suspect in the leg.”
Hall said Kitchens attempted to flee again after being shot.
“He traveled west in the eastbound lane of U.S. 98 until he lost control near the intersection of Firetower Road and U.S. 98,” he said. “There he was finally able to be apprehended.”
The injured deputy, whom officials did not identify, received medical treatment for a leg injury and was released a short time later. Kitchens was transported by AAA Ambulance Service to Forrest General Hospital.
Hall said the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation was notified and is handling the investigation.
“Additional charges may be added as the investigation is ongoing,” he said.
No bond had been set as of Thursday.
