After the shooting, a large group of law officers, including Greene County sheriff’s deputies, Springfield police, and U.S. marshals, converged on the area. The Greene County Sheriff’s Department quickly moved its crime scene investigation vehicle to the scene and took the lead on the investigation. Officers cordoned off the area with Crime Scene tape.

Sheriff Jim Arnott said one of his deputies and a U.S. marshal were involved in the shooting. Both are on administrative leave, which is routine in most law enforcement agencies after shootings.

Arnott said the shooting is related to an investigation of a shooting in Bolivar early Monday. About 3 a.m., the driver of a stolen vehicle fled from a traffic stop, left the vehicle and fired four shots at the officer before fleeing on foot. A search with a tracking dog failed to find him. Bolivar police believe they knew who the driver is. They found stolen guns and other property in the abandoned vehicle.

“My children are very scared right now; they don’t understand what’s going on,” said Tamarra Bough, who lives just a couple houses from the intersection where the shooting was.

Bough was shaken up. She said she was watching television when all of a sudden she heard gunshots.

“I heard six or eight very large, very quick gunshots,” Bough said. After hearing the shots, Bough went out of her home and saw the passenger of a white pickup fall out of the vehicle and onto the street.

“They were ordering the people in the driver’s seat out; they were also ordering the other passenger out. I realized then that they are U.S. marshals because I could see the backs of their jackets,” said Bough. “They told me U.S. marshals were tracking somebody and he pulled a gun on them and they shot back.”

“Deputy sheriffs and U.S. marshals are trained to react. Usually we don’t initially act; we are reacting,” said Arnott.

“It’s very scary,” said Bough. “I can’t believe any of this is happening. It’s completely turned our night into a disaster.”

Officers questioned and released the two people who were in the pickup with the man who was shot.