BUFFALO, N.Y. — The New York State Police say a suspect is dead after a trooper-involved shooting Saturday morning.
According to New York State Police, at 10:38 a.m., troopers were contacted about an erratic driver on the New York State Thruway (I-90). State police say the vehicle was spotted traveling at an excess of 100 mph in the Town of Brant.
During a pursuit that followed, the driver allegedly struck a New York State Police vehicle. That driver allegedly continued to drive erratically and exited onto the I-190 heading northbound into the City of Buffalo.
State Police say the suspect then exited into downtown Buffalo and the chase was called off.
While troopers were patrolling, they located the suspect, who had pulled over and was talking to bystanders, while parked on East Eagle Street, near Washington Street.
Troopers then approached the vehicle and gave verbal commands. State police say the trooper reached into the vehicle, and the person had attempted to flee the scene, putting the vehicle in reverse.
The trooper then discharged their firearm at the suspect, police said.
"The vehicle struck multiple objects, and ultimately overturned on a ramp. The suspect died at the scene," according to a state police spokesperson during a Saturday afternoon news conference.
New York State Police identified the driver as James Huber, 38, of North East, Pennsylvania.
The trooper, identified as Anthony Nigro, has served 14 years with the state police force out of Buffalo. Nigro sustained minor injuries and was being treated at a local hospital.
The area of Washington and Eagle Street was closed for multiple hours as the investigation was launched.
The New York State Attorney General’s Office is also investigating.
Aaron Soman lives in the neighborhood. He says he heard a loud bang from his window and couldn’t believe what he saw when he looked outside.
“It's just frightening, something happening right where you are,” Soman recalls. “Usually there's a lot of construction out here, so we really thought it was just construction, but then we realized it was something much larger and something more serious.”
Soman and his girlfriend say EMTs, fire trucks and police all arrived on scene shortly after.
“My girlfriend said she saw them carry away a body with a white sheet over it,” Soman says. “The police car was towed away too.”
After learning of the incident, Gov. Kathy Hochul issued a statement saying:
"This morning one of our Troopers was involved in a deadly shooting of a motorist after a pursuit in Buffalo. I have directed the New York State Police to fully cooperate with the Attorney General's independent investigation. As we await a transparent and thorough review of the facts, our thoughts are with the victim's family and our Troopers."
On Monday, we learned more about Huber's criminal history going back to 2009 when he was arrested in Georgia and convicted of first-degree arson.
He admitted to burning down the house of his neighbor. Huber was sentenced to five years in prison and five years probation. We're trying to confirm exactly how much time he served in prison in Georgia.
Huber also has a record in Pennsylvania where he also spent some time in prison. He started serving time in July 2015 on a charge of simple assault and was paroled in February of 2017, then sent back to prison in July of 2018 on a parole violation. He also pleaded guilty to a weapons possession charge as part of that assault case. He had other run-ins with the law in Pennsylvania for lesser charges.
2 On Your Side talked with attorney Barry Covert about this on Monday. He is not involved in this case but is very familiar with how these things work. He said the AG's office now takes over the investigation following legislation that passed a few years ago. This happens any time there's a shooting by law enforcement in New York that ends with someone dying.
"The really only change is who is supervising this as the potential prosecution team. It does not mean it's more or less likely that there will be any action taken against the trooper, but instead of having the Erie County District Attorney's Office as formally would have been the case, now the New York State Attorney General's Office takes over the review of the case. They will proceed with the normal investigation by the New York State Trooper's investigation team that's handling this, but they will be supervised by the Attorney General's Office rather than the Erie County District Attorney," said Barry Covert.
There's no time limit for the investigation. Covert says if the AG's office seeks an indictment and gets one, they'll prosecute the case.
If that doesn't happen, they have to post a report on their website describing the investigation and the result.
So we should eventually find out more, we just don't know how long it will take.