A 49-year old Baroda man died in police custody Wednesday after allegedly running from law enforcement in the area of Pipestone Township north of Eau Claire.
Wednesday afternoon, the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office was called to investigate a reported domestic violence incident. When officers arrived, the suspect, 49-year old Josh Tanner from Baroda, allegedly fled on foot.
After using a Michigan State Patrol canine to locate Tanner in a wooded area, he was apparently threatening harm to himself and refused to cooperate with police. That’s when assisting Michigan State Patrol troopers deployed a taser, and Tanner was taken into custody.
The state patrol says after several minutes of moving Tanner out of the woods, he suffered a medical emergency and became unresponsive. Officers performed CPR until medical responders arrived and transported Tanner to Corewell Lakeland Hospital. He died a short time after his arrival.
The State Patrol’s Sixth District Investigative Response Team has been requested to investigate. The investigation remains open pending autopsy results and toxicology analysis.
