Jeffrey Scott “Jeff” Pope

Suicide

Jeffrey Scott Pope reportedly shot himself in the head early Wednesday morning as police entered the home in which Pope had barricaded himself Tuesday night. The standoff began when Pope ran into his home and fired a shot when police came to serve Pope a felony burglary warrant at around 7:30 p.m. For more than five hours, Monroe Police, Louisiana State Police and emergency response teams reportedly made numerous attempts to get Pope to surrender. A phone with a direct line to the SWAT team was deployed into the house, and Pope's family and friends cooperated with negotiators to convince him to come out. One friend mentioned that Pope "was at a breaking point" due to his recent divorce, child custody issues and job loss, and that he had substance use problems. When the negotiations didn't work, officers tried to flush Pope out with gas and a K9 unit, neither of which were successful. Pope allegedly shot at the K-9, but the dog was unharmed. Pope then attempted to get into the attic and police said they decided to enter the home at that time because Pope moving to the attic would have made achieving a peaceful surrender more difficult. Pope then allegedly shot himself. Pope remained in critical condition at a local hospital before passing away on Saturday.