Police: 1 killed in Idaho hotel standoff

TWIN FALLS, Idaho – One bystander was shot and killed, another was held hostage, and a police officer was shot in the leg Friday during a three-hour standoff at an Idaho hotel that ended with the suspect's surrender.

The suspect was arrested late Friday morning after he released the female hostage unharmed.

The hostage's name was not released, but Twin Falls police spokesman Luke Allen said she was not a hotel employee. Police didn't release any details about the slain man.

Idaho State Police Captain Clark Rollins said the trouble started when a trooper tried to make a traffic stop on U.S. Highway 93 near Twin Falls and the driver fled, prompting a chase that reached estimated speeds of 100 mph.

The chase ended when the suspect crashed into another vehicle in Twin Falls, police said.

No one was hurt in the crash, but a passenger in the car was taken into custody and questioned by police. The armed driver, meanwhile, ran into a side door of the nearby Hampton Inn hotel, police said, firing shots inside.

Rollins said one of those shots hit and killed a man inside the hotel. Another struck an Idaho State Police trooper in the leg. The officer was taken to an area hospital for treatment.

The suspect then barricaded himself in a stairwell with the female hostage, according to a joint statement from the Twin Falls Police Department, Twin Falls County Sheriff's Office and Idaho State Police.

Twin Falls police spokesman Luke Allen said two SWAT teams were sent into the building, and negotiators were able to talk to the suspect from behind cover inside the hotel.

After about 30 minutes of negotiations, police said, the suspect released his hostage and surrendered to law enforcement officers.

Rollins said the suspect was the only person who fired shots inside the hotel. Police also declined to release the names of the suspect and injured officer.