A Colorado Department of Corrections officer has been placed on administrative leave after he shot an inmate trying to escape at the Logan County courthouse.

Inmate Brian Estrada, 29, was first treated at a hospital in Sterling before being transferred to Denver Health Medical Center, according to a news release from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. His condition was unknown as of late Wednesday night.

“The officer was responding to an escape attempt by a CDOC offender and fired upon the offender, who was hit by gunfire,” a Colorado Department of Corrections news release said.

The shooting happened about 2:30 p.m. at the Logan County Justice Center. The courthouse was closed for the remainder of the day, according to the Logan County Sheriff’s Office.

Estrada, an inmate at Sterling Correctional Facility, was scheduled for a hearing on a criminal charge when he attempted to flee a courtroom, the CBI said. Estrada was charged in January with second-degree assault of a peace officer, according to court records.

He was convicted in 2016 of contraband introduction and contraband possession – dangerous instrument, court records showed. Those charges were filed by Sterling prison officials.

He previously has been convicted of a 2008 burglary and a 2011 robbery, both committed in Pueblo County.

The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is investigating. The sheriff’s office, Sterling Police Department and the corrections department’s inspector general’s office will assist in the investigation.The officer was not injured. It is department policy to place an officer on paid administrative leave after a shooting, the release said.

https://www.denverpost.com/2018/05/30/logan-county-courthouse-inmate-shot/