Police kill armed Boise woman

BOISE – A 30-year-old Boise woman died Saturday after being shot by two deputies following a high-speed car chase.

Police say Sarah Marie Stanfield tried to elude them, then emerged from the vehicle with a gun.

She was hit by eight bullets and died of multiple gunshot wounds to the chest, according to the Ada County coroner’s report.

Five police agencies were involved in the chase, which exceeded speeds of 100 mph and lasted about 45 minutes, the Ada County Sheriff’s Office said.

Two sheriff’s deputies, one from Ada County and one from Payette County, fired their weapons, Ada County officials said in a press release.

Their names were not immediately released.

After Stanfield got out of her vehicle, she ran through the median on Interstate 84 toward the eastbound lanes, the press release said.

About four minutes elapsed between the time Stanfield emerged from the vehicle and when she was shot, Ada County sheriff’s spokeswoman Andrea Dearden said.

Dearden said it was unclear what happened during those four minutes.

“We aren’t able to say at this point exactly what happened,” Dearden told the Associated Press on Saturday.

“Officers felt they had no other options but to use lethal force.”

She said authorities were still investigating.

Ada County officials said the chase started about 10:35 p.m. Friday when Stanfield sped away from police who had tried to pull her over for a traffic stop.

During the chase, officers learned Stanfield was wanted on a felony warrant and she was likely armed, police said.

Police flattened the tires of her Chevrolet Blazer with spike strips, but Stanfield continued to drive until the Blazer began to smoke.

After being shot, Stanfield was flown to Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, where she died at 12:52 a.m. Saturday.

A male passenger in the vehicle was taken into custody without incident, police said.

His name was not immediately released, and no charges had been filed against him.