Standoff ends with man shooting himself to death

NEW MADRID, Mo. -- The Missouri State Highway Patrol's Division of Drug and Crime Control will investigate a standoff in which a man eventually took his own life.

Greg Davis apparently died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after a standoff that began about 5:15 p.m. Tuesday.

New Madrid police chief Joey Higgerson said Davis had a felony warrant for his arrest with no bond. When officers from the New Madrid Police Department saw Davis enter a home in the 900 block of Mott Street, they contacted a family member in an effort to speak with Davis.

Higgerson said the family member went to a back bedroom and attempted to get Davis to go with the officers, but he refused to come out. Officers then moved down the hall toward the bedroom, asking Davis to come out peacefully.

After about 10 minutes of Davis' relative speaking with him, officers went to the bedroom door and saw Davis, Higgerson reported.

"He immediately began telling the officers that they needed to leave and that he would not be taken alive because he could not go back to jail," the police chief said in a news release. "The officers continued trying to reason with Mr. Davis, but during the conversation he raised a handgun and pointed it at the officers. They did not fire to avoid injury to his family member that could have been caught in the crossfire."

Officers took cover, leaving the house. A perimeter was established around the residence until backup could arrive.

After approximately 30 minutes, Davis' family member came out of the house, and a negotiator unsuccessfully attempted to contact Davis by phone and loudspeaker.

"Shortly thereafter, several of the officers closest to the scene heard what sounded like a muffled gunshot inside the house," Higgerson said.

They later determined the man had shot himself to death.

Pertinent address:

New Madrid, Mo.