Kentucky State Police officials have revealed that a trooper who was slain late Sunday night tried to help the man who fatally shot him.
Trooper Joseph Cameron Ponder had pulled over 25-year-old Joseph Thomas Johnson-Shanks of Missouri on 24 and discovered that he was driving on a suspended license, according to WLKY-TV.
Ponder attempted to make arrangements for the driver and his four passengers, including two children, to stay at a nearby hotel until they could be picked up by relatives the following day.
Instead of accepting the trooper's held, officials said that Johnson-Shanks sped off, then abruptly stopped, causing Ponder's cruiser to rear-end his vehicle.
"At that point, the suspect leaned out of the driver-side window and fired multiple rounds at the trooper car, striking the hood, the windshield and striking our trooper," Kentucky State Police Trooper Jay Thomas told reporters.
Ponder was transported to a hospital in Princeton where he was pronounced dead.
Authorities tracked down Johnson-Shanks Monday morning in a wooded area close to Interstate 24 and fatally shot him after he refused to put down his firearm.
The suspect's niece, Ambrea Shanks -- who was in the car at the time of the traffic stop -- was charged with hindering the apprehension of a suspect.
Ponder was a native of Rineyville, Ky. and had graduated from the Kentucky State Police training academy in January.
"We're all holding together the best we can and continuing to do our jobs. It's tough on us and tough on our families," Thomas said.
