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player ready...Indiana State Police on Monday released the name of the trooper shot in the chest during a routine traffic stop last week on Interstate 94.
Trooper Benjamin Beers has been identified as the K-9 officer who conducted the traffic stop on a gray Hyundai Elantra driven by Aaron Barnes. Beers is an 8-year veteran of the Indiana State Police, according to a release from Sgt. Glen Fifield, public information officer for the Lowell Post.
Beers initiated a traffic stop after Barnes was observed traveling 96 mph in a posted 55 mph zone on I‑80/94 in Lake County, at the eastbound mile marker 2.4/Indianapolis Boulevard. During the course of the traffic stop, an exchange of gunfire occurred between Beers and Barnes in which Beers was shot in the chest.
Barnes, 34, of Gary, was shot and killed at the scene. A passenger in the car, a 34-year-old woman from Gary, was taken into custody and transported to the Lake County Jail, and was released later that Tuesday pending further investigation.
Beers, who was wearing a bulletproof vest, underwent successful surgery at the University of Chicago Hospital and has since been released. He is now at home recovering.
In accordance with Indiana State Police policy, Trooper Beers has been placed on administrative duty pending the outcome of the investigation. The identities of the other officers involved will be released by their respective departments, should they choose to do so, Fifield said.
Two Lake County officers and one Hammond Police officer also discharged their firearms at the suspect, officials said. The two Lake County Sheriff’s deputies, who were not wounded, were taken to an area hospital for evaluation. They were expected to be medically cleared and placed on paid administrative leave in accordance with department policy and procedure, according to a previous statement from Sheriff Oscar Martinez Jr.
A Hammond Police officer initially drove Beers to Community Hospital in Munster. The status of that officer is not immediately known.
A detective from the state police Lafayette Post is the lead investigator. The investigation remains ongoing. The case will be submitted to Lake County Prosecutor Bernard Carter for review once it’s completed.