An Ohio judge shot "ambush-style" Monday morning outside the courthouse in Steubenville was seriously wounded and the suspect was killed.
The suspect is said to have walked up to Common Pleas Judge Joseph J. Bruzzese Jr. as he was going toward the courthouse Monday morning and shot the judge several times, point blank near his stomach, CNN reported.
The suspect was killed during a shootout. Bruzzese was armed, as was a nearby probation officer on the scene, CNN said.
A passenger in the suspect’s car was taken into custody, USA Today reported. The suspect’s body was still at the scene Monday afternoon.
An investigation will reveal at a latter time who shot the suspect, CNN reported. The Bureau of Criminal Investigation in Ohio is investigating the incident.
Bruzzese was talking after being shot, USA Today reported. He was taken by air to a Pittsburgh hospital, but his condition was not immediately known. Steubenville is about 30 miles from Pittsburgh.
The courthouse was closed down for the rest of Monday as the scene was secured by local and state authorities. Some courthouse workers witnessed the shooting, Jefferson County Commissioner Thomas Graham said, USA Today reported.
Bruzzese, 65, hears domestic violence and general cases and is one of two judges at Jefferson County. He has served there since 1997 and was re-elected in 2014.
“Fran and I are praying for Judge Bruzzese and his family at this difficult time,” Ohio Attorney General Mike Dewine said of himself and his wife, USA Today reported.