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ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) -- A police standoff with an escaped jail inmate has ended in St. George.
Police say 48-year-old Joseph Watson shot and killed himself this afternoon. Officers heard the shot and went inside the home, where they found Watson.
Police say Watson was taken to Dixie Regional Medical Center where he later died.
Officers entered the home after hearing a single shot Friday afternoon. They had been trying to negotiate Watson out of the home since he fired three shots at officers, who had broken a window to throw a cell phone into the house shortly after midnight, Harding said. The shots didn't hit anything and police blocked off streets leading to the area in case there was more gunfire.
Watson had walked away from a work detail at the Purgatory Correctional Facility in February and had been eluding police ever since, Harding said.
Officers located Watson after arresting his wife on outstanding warrants late Thursday, Harding said. The Watsons were staying at the home where the standoff took place after the owners told them they could use the upstairs until they found a place to stay.
"They graciously offered their home to he and his wife so they could stay there, figuring they were homeless. That's how they came to be there," Harding said.
------ Information from: The Spectrum, http://www.thespectrum.com
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
