Detectives Investigate Shooting Near Gig Harbor Construction Site

GIG HARBOR, WA — Pierce County detectives said a neighbor confronted and shot an apparent intruder near the Artondale Elementary School construction site Tuesday evening. Investigators are still determining whether any charges will be filed.

According to the sheriff's department, deputies arrived at the intersection of 64th Avenue Northwest and 41st Street Northwest, just before 8:30 p.m. Officers from the Gig Habor Police Department were first on the scene.

When the first officer arrived, he found a man lying in the road with a gunshot wound and another man keeping pressure on the wound and providing first aid. Deputies said they later learned the man helping was the suspected shooter. The sheriff's department said an officer found a handgun in the road, along with a baton and brass knuckles near the victim. All three weapons were seized as evidence.

According to the sheriff's department, the suspected shooter told deputies he lived nearby and heard noises coming from school property, then armed himself and went to investigate "out of concern for ongoing criminal issues at the school construction site."

Investigators said the man confronted the apparent intruder and told him to leave, but the other man "displayed a weapon." The neighbor fired a shot, hitting the man once, and waited at the scene until officers arrived. The sheriff's department said the suspected shooter was released from custody "after detectives consulted with prosecutors on the known circumstances of the shotting."

The investigation is still ongoing, and its findings will be forwarded to the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney's Office for a final charging decision.