Pasco sniper killed Benton City standoff suspect

A Tri-City Regional SWAT sniper took the shot that killed a West Richland man ending a nearly three-hour standoff in Benton City on Thursday.

The name of the 50-year-old man who was shot has not been made public because his family has yet to be notified, said Pasco police.

The Tri-City Special Investigations Unit of investigators from area law enforcement agencies is doing an independent review of the incident to make sure proper procedures were followed.

It's the seventh time since 2017 that SIU has been activated.

The officer, Tom Groom, works for the Pasco Police Department and is on paid leave pending an investigation into the incident. He is a three-year veteran with Pasco and has been a member of the SWAT team for a year and a half.

Benton County deputies were called to 1000 Jonah Lane just before 11 a.m. to check on a possibly suicidal man with a gun, police said.

By the time deputies got there, he had gone into the home. Four people were able to get outside, but the homeowner, 49-year-old Ellen Haworth, remained inside.

After initially trying to convince the man to let her go, deputies asked for help from on-duty Tri-Cities Regional SWAT team members.

SWAT negotiators learned Haworth was being held against her will, and the man continued pointing the gun at her.

"For approximately an hour and 15 minutes, the male repeatedly threatened his own life and the life of Haworth," Pasco police said. "During the entire time, crisis negotiators made every attempt to get the male to release Haworth and to peacefully surrender."

Groom, who also is a SWAT team precision marksman, could see the man and Haworth in the room and and fired one shot, hitting the man, said officials.

Emergency medics could not save his life, said police. An autopsy is planned, according to the Benton County Coroner's Office.

Police said he had a history of assaults, including violence toward police.

This story was originally published June 8, 2018 at 12:58 PM with the headline "Pasco sniper killed Benton City standoff suspect."