DULUTH – Donald Felver III led deputies on a chase in West Duluth before exchanging gunfire with law enforcement, according to video released Tuesday, Feb. 17, by the St. Louis County Sheriff’s office.
Felver, 30, died at the scene.
The eight-minute video posted to YouTube is a compilation of body camera and squad camera footage from the Feb. 10 shooting.
In the video, St. Louis County deputy Matthew Sobczak first spots Felver on Grand Avenue and attempts a traffic stop. Felver turns onto side streets and into an alley before returning to the main road. Sgt. Joshua Berndt rams his squad car into the back half of Felver’s SUV, causing it to stop.
Both deputies approach the stalled vehicle, calling for Felver to come out with his hands up. Felver exchanges gunfire with the deputies, the driver’s side window filling with bullet holes.
Neither deputy was injured and both were placed on a standard critical incident leave.
In its preliminary investigation, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said Felver fired first. Spent casings and a weapon were found in his vehicle.
Law enforcement officials later described Felver as a suspect in an earlier shooting that day in Duluth. Darius Handy was fatally shot while driving on Piedmont Avenue five hours before the encounter between Felver and the two deputies.
