Answers sought in Keokuk County shooting deaths

SIGOURNEY - While investigators continue to seek answers in the shooting deaths Monday of a Keokuk County Sheriff's Office deputy and the man accused of killing him, details are emerging about the first slaying of an Iowa law enforcement officer in 25 years.

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[naviga:li]Jeff Krier, 53, of Sigourney, who police say shot Deputy Eric Stein, 38, of What Cheer, battled bipolar disorder for three decades and was hospitalized recently for the disease, his family said Tuesday.[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]An autopsy performed Tuesday found Stein died of a shotgun wound to the head, said Dr. Dennis Klein, deputy state medical examiner.[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Stein focused his life around helping care for people in the community and served as an EMT before becoming a deputy, according to his father.[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Stein, Sheriff Jeff Shipley and Deputy Casey Hinnah investigated bullet holes in the home of a neighbor of Krier's shortly before Stein was killed.[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Authorities have said the officers were going to talk to Krier about an incident from the night before but have declined to be more specific.[/naviga:li]

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Terry Steinhart, who lives about a mile from Krier, said the incident may have involved his home. He found two bullet holes in his house and his garage door rammed in Sunday night after returning from getting ice cream. He said the sheriff and two deputies came to his house Monday morning.

“They said they had a suspect in mind and were going to investigate,” Steinhart said.

He said he doesn't know who the suspect was, but he learned of the shooting shortly after the officers left.

Investigators say Krier fired on the three officers shortly before noon Monday as they arrived at his home on 249th Street southwest of Sigourney. Krier was shot and killed by members of the Iowa State Patrol Tactical Unit after a three-hour standoff.

Krier's autopsy is scheduled for today.

Krier did not have a permit to carry a weapon, said Jessica Lown, a spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Public Safety. The Iowa Division of Investigation is trying to determine where Krier's weapons came from, how many he had and who fired shots, she said.

Krier had been hospitalized for seven days in March, Krier's brother, Sam, and sister, Debbie, said in a statement released Tuesday. It was not immediately clear whether he voluntarily entered the hospital or was involuntarily committed.

Related links

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[naviga:li]Krier had long history of mental illness, substance abuse, records state[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Family of Sigourney shooting suspect releases statement[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Keokuk County officer shot and killed; suspect dead[/naviga:li]

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“While Jeff's mental illness may have contributed to the tragedy, it in no way provides comfort or solace to the many who have been impacted by his actions,” his siblings said.

“Jeff was a loving brother who struggled with mental illness for the past three decades ... and had tremendous difficulty managing his illness,” they said.

Krier background

Krier also suffered from alcoholism and drug abuse since at least the mid-1990s, according to court records filed in Wapello County.

Krier had not worked in 15 years because of his mental illness and lived with his parents, Glen and Roselyn Krier, near Sigourney until his parents went to live at a nursing home in March, his brother and sister said.

Krier's parents agreed to take responsibility for him following a rash of arrests in the mid-1990s including charges of carrying weapons, stalking, assault and drunken driving. He was found not guilty of many of the charges by reason of insanity.

He was charged Nov. 8, 1995, with carrying weapons after officers stopped him while he was driving a tractor with a manure spreader on the back near Ottumwa, according to court records. Officers seized a loaded 9 mm pistol that Krier had concealed in his pocket and also found marijuana in Krier's shirt pocket, the records state.

Krier was charged with stalking, a Class D felony, in December 1996 based on allegations he called, visited and sent letters to an Ottumwa woman, causing her fear, records state.

“Victim has had to take a very large straight knife from the defendant in the recent week when he was going to be involved in a fight with another person,” according to the criminal complaint.

In another incident, Krier was charged with assault on a peace officer based on allegations he hit an officer in the arm and kicked another in the leg on Dec. 8, 1999.

Krier spent time at the Mount Pleasant Mental Health Institute and at least one drug treatment program, court records state. But on Oct. 16, 1997, an 8th District Court Judge released him from custody, in part, because his parents said they would house and support their son.

“The defendant currently suffers a mental illness,” Judge Dan Morrison wrote in the order. “The defendant does not currently represent a danger to himself or others.”

Psychiatrists who evaluated Krier during court proceedings said he suffered from bipolar disorder and restless leg syndrome.

Bipolar disorder, also known as manic depression, is a common psychiatric disorder that includes irregular periods of extremely elevated mood and, often, periods of depression and recovery, according to the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill.

Stein remembered

Meanwhile, Stein's father, Lonnie Stein of What Cheer, said his son was a great father to his daughter, Shelby, who is in elementary school.

“He was very well liked. He was an EMT for several years before he became a deputy,” said Lonnie Stein, who last saw his son about seven weeks ago. “And (Eric) went around and helped a lot of people in the area.”

Stein said he doesn't know a lot of details about the shooting. He was in Texas on Monday and on Tuesday started the drive home to What Cheer with several other family members.

The last Iowa peace officer to be shot and killed in the line of duty was Daniel M. McPherren Sr. of the Newton Police Department on Sept. 13, 1985, according to the Iowa Department of Public Safety website.

Gazette reporters Mark Carlson, Gregg Hennigan, Erin Jordan and Jillian Petrus contributed to this story.

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