In Elizabethtown, Kentucky, a tragic incident unfolded as an individual, identified as Christopher Elder, took the lives of his ex-girlfriend Erica Riley and her mother, Janet Riley, outside a courthouse. The episode commenced when Elder allegedly fired shots in a parking lot near the Hardin County Justice Center. There was a third victim related to the two women who sustained injuries and is reported to be in stable condition.
After the shooting, Elder engaged law enforcement in a pursuit along a highway. The pursuit concluded in a church parking lot in the Fruit Hill community in Christian County, Kentucky, where at one point, Elder pointed a rifle at officers before turning the weapon on himself. The suspect, aged 46, was airlifted to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, and succumbed to his self-inflicted gunshot wound the same evening.
Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman expressed determination to collaborate with state policymakers to avert similar devastating incidents in the future, emphasizing the gravity of domestic violence as an issue that necessitates attention and action. Coleman’s office is committed to cooperating with various stakeholders, including policymakers, prosecutors, advocates, and law enforcement, to safeguard victims of domestic violence.
Following a stand-off that lasted about 90 minutes, Elder tragically ended his own life. The incident sparked a comprehensive search for the suspect, culminating in the church parking lot confrontation where the suspect fatally shot himself. Elizabethtown, situated about 45 miles south of Louisville, and the Fruit Hill community, approximately 108 miles southwest of Elizabethtown, were the locations where these distressing events transpired.
