Man who shot himself in the head still in hospital

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, October 10, 2007

The Bowling Green Police Department is monitoring the condition of a man who shot himself after a standoff with law enforcement Oct. 3 on Hospital Hill.

Brian McClure, 31, of Woodburn remains in critical condition in the trauma center at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. He had surgery Tuesday and today at the facility.

City police Detective Barry Raley said he continues to check on McClure’s condition, and the department will determine what will happen if McClure is released from the hospital.

Two warrants have been issued for McClure, Raley said. One is for terroristic threatening, a misdemeanor, and the other requires that he be taken to a facility for a mental health evaluation.

“We’re still actively involved checking on the situation,” Raley said.

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The key is going to be McClure’s mental condition, Raley said.

“If he still needs help, he’s still going to be dangerous to other people when he gets out,” Raley said.

McClure went to a Park Street parking lot on Hospital Hill on Oct. 3 to meet police officers, who intended to take McClure to LifeSkills for a mental health evaluation. McClure came to the area voluntarily, but pulled out a handgun, leading to the standoff.

An officer had asked McClure to meet them there after someone reported that McClure had threatened to kill a police officer that day, according to police reports.

Officers negotiated with McClure, urging him to put down the .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun, but McClure eventually shot himself in the head after nearly three hours, according to reports.

McClure shot himself immediately after the city police Critical Response Team used a flash-bang grenade as a distraction. Team members then tried to run to the truck to grab McClure, and he shot himself twice in the head, said Officer Barry Pruitt.

McClure had called the department for a couple of days prior, making threats, Pruitt said. McClure was paranoid that people were following him, including the FBI and other federal agencies, he said.