Aloha man dies after shooting at deputies

ALOHA, Ore. - An Aloha man died at his home late Saturday after allegedly shooting at two Washington County deputies who returned fire, authorities said.

The man killed was identified as 37-year-old Steve Stanturf, pictured at right.

According to the Washington County Sheriff's Office, deputies initially responded to Stanturf's home at 19977 S.W. Stokesay Lane about 9:30 p.m. to investigate a report of a disturbance there. They determined no one there had committed a crime and left.

Then about 11 p.m., someone called 911 to report that Stanturf was intoxicated, possibly suicidal and had several firearms in his home. When deputies arrived, they briefly talked with Stanturf in the yard before he fired several rounds at them, the sheriff's office said. The deputies fired back and struck Stanturf with an undetermined number of rounds.

Injured, Stanturf went back into his home, causing deputies to call in a tactical negotiations team to take over the incident, the sheriff's office said.

After unsuccessfully trying to contact Stanturf, deputies went inside and found him dead, the sheriff's office said.

The state medical examiner's office was trying to determine whether Stanturf died from the deputies' bullets or shot himself.

Neighbors described Stanturf as a married father with teenage children who worked in construction. He had no criminal history, just two traffic tickets on his record.

The Washington County Major Crimes Team is investigating the shooting. A report will be forwarded to the Washington County District Attorney's Office.

The sheriff's office declined to release the names of the deputies involved, who were put on paid leave during the investigation. They reportedly were not injured in the incident.