LENAWEE COUNTY

4 deputies on leave after fatal shooting

8/14/2014
BLADE STAFF

ADRIAN — Four Lenawee County sheriff’s deputies were placed on administrative leave after an incident late Tuesday in which a 54-year-old man was shot and killed by deputies.

Authorities said the man had a shotgun and ignored orders to drop the weapon, leading deputies to fire in self defense, authorities said..

Michigan State Police and the sheriff’s office, in a joint news release, said deputies responded about 8:15 p.m. to a Fairfield Township home “to enforce a court order for hospitalization” issued earlier that day for a 54-year-old man “who was suffering from mental illness and was in need of immediate evaluation.”

The man, whom authorities did not identify, was pronounced dead at the scene. Sheriff Jack Welsh would not say how many times the man was shot nor would he identify the four deputies. The case will be reviewed by the county prosecutor.