Man In Custody, Hospitalized After Shooting Ex-Wife At Workplace

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- North St. Paul police say a man who allegedly shot his former wife at her workplace is hospitalized after trying to kill himself during a standoff with police.

Forty-seven-year-old John Bruce Steurer, of Anoka, walked into Anchor Molding and Tool Company Wednesday just before 2:30 p.m. and shot the woman with a gunshot.

Police say she escaped by running from Steurer after being shot. He left when his shotgun malfunctioned.

North St. Paul Police Sgt. Michael Lang says she survived by running after being shot.

"He met her in her office upstairs. They had a verbal argument and it went bad, and he pulled out a shotgun, shot her, assuming [he was standing] probably five, seven feet away from her," Lang said.

Steurer fled the scene in a black SUV. Law enforcement in the north metro were placed on high alert because investigators believed he may return to the Anoka County area.

His vehicle was spotted at about 5:15 p.m. in Bunker Hills Regional Park in Coon Rapids. Deputies responded, and engaged Steurer in his SUV with a BearCat vehicle at about 5:35 p.m.

Cmd. Paul Sommer from the Anoka County Sheriff's office says Steurer refused the demands of officers and deputies to stop his vehicle and surrender, and instead pointed a weapon at the BearCat.

The suspect eventually did stop, and law enforcement soon heard gunshots coming from inside his vehicle. Steurer then started to drive away again, ramming an unmarked police vehicle in the process. Officers then again heard another gunshot come from the SUV.

Sommer says Steurer stopped his SUV yet again, but continued to ignore their demands. Deputies and officers eventually approached his vehicle just before 6 p.m. and saw he had suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the face.

Steurer was hospitalized, but his condition has not been released.

Sommer says there were no major injuries to law enforcement, and they did not discharge their weapons at any point during the ordeal.

The identity of the victim has not been released, but police say she had surgery Wednesday night and is expected to survive.

Steurer is expected to face several felony charges. The Anoka County Sheriff's office is continuing its investigation.