Delaware woman wanted in Wilmington shooting dead following standoff in Chester, Pa.

Esteban Parra, Delaware News Journal
Updated ·4 min read
13

A 23-year-old woman wanted in connection with a December shooting in Wilmington is dead following a police chase that started in Delaware Tuesday morning and ended in a standoff in Chester, Pennsylvania, officials said.

The woman has not been identified, but Wilmington police said she was wanted in connection with a shooting that occurred in the 500 block of W. Eighth St. That Dec. 2 shooting wounded a 34-year-old man.

Another 34-year-old man was charged in connection with that shooting, police said in a Dec. 3 statement. That man was arraigned last week and his trial is pending.

Update: Police ID Delaware woman shot dead in Chester, Pa., during standoff with multiple police

Tuesday's chase into Pennsylvania

Members of Wilmington's Drug, Organized Crime and Vice Division, Uniformed Services Division and Canine Unit responded to the 300 block of N. Madison St. just before noon on Tuesday in an attempt to arrest the woman.

The woman, police said in a statement released Tuesday afternoon, evaded officers and rammed several Wilmington Police vehicles before fleeing onto I-95 northbound and into Pennsylvania. She was followed by Wilmington Police, as well as Delaware State Police. After crossing into Pennsylvania, police said the woman crashed her vehicle and fired a gun at police. Two members of the Delaware State Police fired back during that exchange. The woman was able to gain access to another vehicle and drive into Chester, police said, where she crashed into a structure.

Following a home invasion, the woman got into a third vehicle and tried to flee. At that time, police said 10 officers fired at the woman:

  • Three members of the Wilmington Police Department.

  • Five members of the Delaware State Police.

  • One member of the Trainer Borough, Pennsylvania, Police Department

  • And one member of the Chester Police Department.

"The suspect ultimately succumbed to her injuries, and her identity will be released once family notifications are complete," David Karas, a Wilmington police spokesperson, said.

This incident is under investigation by the Delaware County, Pennsylvania, District Attorney's Office. The Wilmington Police officers who fired their guns have been placed on administrative duty pending the investigation and this incident is being investigated by the department's Criminal Investigations Division and the Office of Professional Standards.

A Pennsylvania Department of Transportation camera shows I-95 with lane closures at the Commodore Barry Bridge exit Tuesday afternoon
A Pennsylvania Department of Transportation camera shows I-95 with lane closures at the Commodore Barry Bridge exit Tuesday afternoon

The incident closed roadways in Chester, including portions of I-95.

Delaware chase ends in Pennsylvania

This would be the second Delaware police chase that has ended up closing the interstate in Pennsylvania in less than two months.

I-95, just over the border in Pennsylvania, was closed for part of the day on April 4 following an early-morning crash involving a 25-year-old man who fled in a stolen police vehicle after being shot by an officer in New Castle County.

That incident unfolded about 2:30 a.m. on April 4, when New Castle County police were called to Cynwyd Club Apartment Complex off Limestone Road for a domestic incident. While investigating, police said Tyrese Knuckles ran on foot.

HISTORY REPEATS: 4 police agencies, a shooting and a car chase: How Thursday morning incident unfolded

He made his way to a shopping center at Milltown and Limestone roads, where a different officer who had been told of Knuckles' flight was looking for the man. That officer, an eight-year veteran of the apartment, spotted Knuckles and gave him several commands to stop.

A confrontation ensued, during which the officer used his Taser, police said. While the stun gun hit him, it was ineffective.

As a result, the officer pulled out his gun and shot Knuckles, who police said was struck in the torso. His injuries were not life-threatening.

Though Knuckles was wounded, police said he managed to run to the nearby patrol vehicle, get in it and sped off.

By that time, New Castle County police had called for backup. Delaware State Police and Wilmington police joined the chase, which wound through the county before entering Wilmington city limits. As Knuckles fled, he hit several police vehicles, police said, injuring a three-year veteran of the New Castle County Police and a Delaware State Police trooper.

The chase ended on I-95 in Pennsylvania near the Commodore Barry Bridge after the patrol car Knuckles was in became disabled on the side of the road following a crash, police said. Knuckles, who police said tried to run from the car in Pennsylvania, was arrested "almost immediately" on a side street nearby.

He was taken to Crozer-Chester Medical Center, where he was listed as "stable."

Knuckles, who was wanted out of Philadelphia for stalking, is expected to be charged in connection to the April incident.

Send tips or story ideas to Esteban Parra at (302) 324-2299 or eparra@delawareonline.com.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Wanted Delaware woman killed in Chester, Pa. police standoff