Joplin SWAT officer placed on administrative leave following Saturday shooting in Baxter Springs

(From the Joplin Police Department)

A Joplin Police Department SWAT officer is under an administrative suspension due to his role in an officer-involved shooting during a mutual aid request at a standoff at 340 Wyandotte Avenue in Baxter Springs, Kansas Saturday night.

Eli Crawford, 37, shot and killed 27-year-old Taylor Dawn Shutte, a former Joplin resident, then went back inside the home with their two-year-old daughter Cessie Crawford.

The standoff was described in a Crawford County Sheriff's Office news release:

At that point law enforcement personnel with the Baxter Springs Police Department and the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office began taking fire from the suspect.

As the suspect continued to shoot at law enforcement, additional assistance from the Kansas Highway Patrol, Kansas Bureau of Investigation and Joplin SWAT Team was requested.

During the nearly three-and-a-half-hour assault on law enforcement, an officer was able to return fire towards the suspect.

When officers approached the residence, Crawford and the child were deceased inside.

The case is being investigated by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.