LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The man accused of fatally shooting his ex-girlfriend and her mother outside the Hardin County courthouse early Monday died in the hospital from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Christopher Elder, 46, died late Monday evening "as a result of the self-inflicted gunshot wound he sustained during yesterday’s standoff," according to Chris Denham, public information officer for the Elizabethtown Police Department.
According to a post on the Hopkinsville Police Department Facebook page, several police agencies were involved in tracking Elder down, including the Hopkinsville Police Department, Christian County Sheriff's Office, Muhlenberg County Sheriff's Office and Kentucky State Police.
The post states that Elder "pointed a rifle at pursuing officers multiple times." He then "fled into a church parking lot pointing the rifle at himself and at officers."
Christian County Sheriff's deputies and Hopkinsville police negotiators spoke with Elder for about 90 minutes before he attempted to take his own life by shooting himself in the head, according to the Facebook post. He was then flown to Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee, where he died Monday evening.
Police said Elder's victims had filed an emergency protective order against him in Hardin County Family Court on Aug. 8, and were scheduled to be in court Monday to have it extended.
Witnesses told police they saw Elder circling the courthouse until the victims arrived. That's when he opened fire, killing 37-year-old Erica Riley of Elizabethtown, who died at the scene.
Her mother, 71-year-old Janet Riley, of Hardinsburg, was hospitalized after the shooting but died from her injuries. Erica Riley's father was also shot. At last report, he was hospitalized in stable condition.
"We extend our deepest condolences to the families affected by this senseless act of violence," Denham said, adding that no further information will be released from Elizabethtown Police concerning this investigation.
Kentucky State Police Post 2 is leading the investigation.
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