VIDEO: Investigation Under Way Into Shooting of 6-Year-Old Boy in Louisiana Vehicle Pursuit

The Louisiana State Police said Thursday that they were starting an investigation into the apparent officer-involved shooting death of Jeremy Mardis, 6, in Marksville, LA, on Tuesday night. In the last minutes of the boy’s life, he was with his father, Chris Few, who was at the wheel of his S.U.V., apparently trying to elude city marshals who wanted to arrest him.

The state police said in a statement that the marshals opened fire on the S.U.V. at the end of the pursuit, about 9:30 p.m., and that the driver was critically injured and the boy was killed.

Three of the officers involved in the pursuit were members of the Marksville Police Department — two full-time officers and one reserve officer — who were moonlighting as city marshals. City marshals have police powers while working for city courts serving warrants. The fourth was a city marshal for Alexandria, the New York Times reports.