Teen Used WWII-Era Sniper Rifle To Fatally Shot Sheriff's Deputy

Tuesday, June 19th 2007, 7:24 am

By: News On 6

GEORGETOWN, Ind. (AP) _ A 15-year-old boy used a World War II-era sniper rifle to fatally shoot a deputy and critically wound another outside his southern Indiana home, authorities said Tuesday.

The teen, Tyler Dumstorf, had shot the deputies Monday evening and was found with a self-inflicted gunshot early Tuesday inside the home about 13 miles outside Louisville, Ky., authorities said.

Dumstorf used the M1 Garand in the shooting, prosecutor Keith Henderson said. He said the boy's father bought the gun some time ago and that he and his son shot it during target practice. The gun is a showpiece, and possessing one is not illegal, the prosecutor said.

``The cause of yesterday's tragedy isn't the weapon. It's the person who fired it,'' he said.

The deputies had gone to the home to investigate a call from his mother about a confrontation with the boy.

``There was nothing to indicate to the officers that it was anything more than a routine domestic call,'' Henderson said. He said the boy had been due in court Tuesday on a misdemeanor marijuana charge, adding that hearing was part of the discussion with his mother.

Henderson said it was premature to say it was the reason for the shooting.

As the officers were talking to his mother and an aunt in the driveway, the boy fired from an upstairs window, striking each deputy in the back, he said. Minutes later, Henderson said, the boy posted a message on his Web page that said: ``I just killed two cops. Goodbye.''

White was able to return fire, but none of his shots hit Dumstorf, Henderson said. The prosecutor referred to the deputies as ``sitting ducks'' and said they had no chance to protect themselves.

Deputy Frank Denzinger, a four-year veteran of the sheriff's department, died hours after the shooting, Floyd County Sheriff Darrell Mills said. Deputy Joel White, who has been with the department 17 months, was hospitalized Tuesday in serious condition, Mills said.

Sheriff's Lt. Frank Loop said the boy's mother was not injured.

Dumstorf had just completed his freshman year at Floyd Central High School in nearby Floyds Knobs, said school spokesman Dave Rarick. He gave no other information about the boy, citing federal privacy laws.

Entries on Dumstorf's MySpace page indicated he was an honors student and that he liked classic rock.