Police chase in northwestern Wisconsin ends in suicide

BARRON, Wis. — Authorities say a police chase in northwestern Wisconsin ended in a suicide.

Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald says in a statement that a Bloomer police officer around 12:30 a.m. Saturday spotted the car of a domestic abuse suspect who was said to have a rifle. A chase ensued on Highway 53 and continued into Barron Count. Deputies asked the Barron Police Department to set up spike strips, which punctured three tires on the suspect's car.

As the vehicle came to a stop, the driver failed to get out or obey deputies' commands. After several minutes, because of the possibility that the suspect was armed, deputies made a tactical approach with shields and a flash-bang grenade. They found the driver, 66-year-old Michael Haile, of Stitzer, dead from a self-inflicted gunshot.