March 30, 2023 -The Decatur Police Department says a domestic violence call early this morning led to officer involved shooting after the suspect charged police with a knife.
Decatur police were called to the 400 block of E. Orchard St. just before 4am this morning on a domestic violence call indicating that the adult male and female residents were involved in a fight and that the male suspect in this case had threatened a juvenile with a knife.
The adult male suspect was identified as 43 year old Steven L. Hirstein. The female is 34 years old and is the mother of the juvenile.
Prior to officers arriving, they were made aware that Hirstein was wanted for Aggravated Domestic Battery and Domestic Battery for previous incidents.
Multiple officers arrived on scene to handle this incident. According to police, the female had stab and slash wounds on her body and police found Hirstein in a bathroom. Police believed he may have been armed with a knife and gave multiple commands for Hirstein to show them his hands and to come out of the bathroom.
As the officers tried to get Hirstein to surrender, he charged at the officers while armed with a knife. Fearing for their lives, two Decatur Police Officers discharged their firearms at Hirstein, striking him multiple times. First aid was provided to Hirstein and he was subsequently transported to DMH to be treated for his injuries. The female victim was also transported to DMH for treatment for her injuries.
Hirstein’s injuries are non-life threatening. He is currently being treated at DMH and is in stable condition. The female victim was also transported to DMH where she was found to have multiple stab wounds to the back, arm and hip, and a cut on her chest. She was released from the hospital late this morning. Hirstein is currently under guard and upon his release from DMH he will be arrested on charges of Attempted Murder, Aggravated Domestic Battery, and Aggravated Assault related to this incident.
As per standard protocol. police immediately contacted the Illinois State Police to conduct an independent investigation into the use of deadly force by DPD officers. Once the ISP is finished with their investigation, they will forward that to the Macon County State’s Attorney’s Office for final review. It will be the State’s Attorney’s Office that determines if the use of deadly force was justified under the law. In addition, DPD will conduct a parallel internal investigation into the incident to ensure all DPD policies were followed.
The Decatur police have declined to identify the officers, however they stated that one is an 8-year veteran and the other recently completed his first year as a police officer. Both officers are assigned to the Patrol Division on the night shift. This incident was captured on the body-cameras of multiple officers, including those that fired their weapons.
Police are asking that anyone who believes they have information relevant to this case, whether they were a witness, they have some form of video, or they know the parties involved in this domestic violence incident and can offer insight, to contact the Illinois State Police, Zone 5 Investigations, at 815-844-1500.
