Man Shot By Lake Elsinore Sheriff's Station Deputy

Police are reporting that an adult male suspect, who was allegedly driving a stolen Toyota Tundra truck, was shot by a Lake Elsinore Sheriff's Station deputy early this morning.

The shooting occurred in the 16300 block of Clement Street in Lake Elsinore near Lakeshore Drive at approximately 12:40 a.m. Friday, according to a Lake Elsinore Police Department report.

The incident began after a deputy pulled the truck's driver over for a vehicle code violation.

According to the police report the driver yielded, but then as the deputy exited his partrol car the driver tried to strike him with the truck.

“The suspect rammed the police car and attempted to ram the officer with his vehicle, which caused the officer to fire his duty weapon at the suspect,” the police report stated.

The suspect was hit by fire and was wounded, but the number of shots fired by the deputy and the extent of the suspect’s injuries have not been released.

“He is still in the hospital,” said Cpl. Courtney Donowho of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, but she could not confirm the suspect’s medical condition.

The suspect's name has not yet been released by authorities.

Cpl. Donowho said that any injuries the deputy may have received during the incident “were very minor.”

The Riverside County Fire Department and American Medical Response arrived within minutes of the shooting. The first responders provided medical care for the suspect and transported him to a local hospital, the police report stated.

Investigation later revealed that the Tundra truck had been reported stolen out of Lake Elsinore.

"It had been stolen within the last 24 hours" of the incident, Cpl. Donowho said.

Detectives from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department Central Homicide Unit and the Lake Elsinore Police Department have assumed the investigation.

Per Department policy, the officer involved in the incident has been placed on paid administrative leave, pending the outcome of the investigation.