NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) – The suspect who was killed in the Seventh Ward Sunday after a trooper was shot in the arm died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to the Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office.
Police said a State Police trooper tried to pull over a suspected stolen vehicle about 3:30 p.m. Sunday, when three suspects got out of the vehicle and reportedly starting shooting at the trooper. Gunfire was exchanged, and the trooper was shot in the arm.
The three suspects fled on food into the Seventh Ward neighborhood.
Within minutes, officers with NOPD and State Police arrived onto the scene and began to search for the suspects.
One of the three suspects, 37-year-old Bernie Porche, started reportedly started shooting at police again, prompting NOPD and State Police officers to return fire.
The coroner’s office said dash-cam video shows Porche fell to the ground after officers fired shots at him. Shortly after he fell to the ground, he shot himself in the head, according to the coroner’s office.
The autopsy shows Porche was also shot once in the upper leg and once in the back, but the coroner said the fatal shot was the one Porche inflicted on himself.
The two other suspects fled on foot in the area. They are still at large.
The injured State Trooper was taken to University Medical Center. He was released Monday.