Okfuskee County Sheriff remains on duty after fatal shooting

<br>PADEN, Okla. (AP) _ The Okfuskee County sheriff remained on duty after fatally shooting a man who held officers at bay early Monday. <br><br>Sheriff James C. Fox shot John Henry Steiner, 41, to death

Wednesday, August 20th 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

PADEN, Okla. (AP) _ The Okfuskee County sheriff remained on duty after fatally shooting a man who held officers at bay early Monday.

Sheriff James C. Fox shot John Henry Steiner, 41, to death after Steiner walked outside his house holding a shotgun, said Jessica Brown, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman.

The shooting ended about two hours of negotiations stemming from a domestic disturbance call.

Steiner's common-law wife, Valerie Myatt, was arrested at the scene on an outstanding warrant for failure to appear in Oklahoma County District court on a child abuse case, Brown said.

Steiner received a 60-year prison sentence, with 35 years suspended, in 1981, said Jerry Massie, state Corrections Department spokesman. He also received a four-year sentence for robbery by force and was convicted of having contraband in prison, Massie said.

Usually law enforcement officers are suspended after using deadly force until an investigation is finished.

But an Okfuskee County commissioner said he wasn't sure who has the authority to suspend Fox.

The sheriff's office referred calls to the OSBI, which is handling the investigation.