Rockford Officer Shot Suspect Before Fatal Crash: Autopsy

ROCKFORD, IL — A Rockford officer who died early Sunday while making a traffic stop fired his weapon, killing the suspect, before he was killed, police said. Autopsies conducted Monday showed that Officer Jaimie Cox, 30, died of blunt force trauma believed to be caused by a single-vehicle crash with suspect Eddie Patterson, 49, at the wheel. The Winnebago County Coroner's Office has ruled Cox's death a homicide, police said.

Patterson was killed by gunshots that police believe were fired by Cox. Police said Patterson also received injuries when his pickup truck crashed about two blocks north of the initial traffic stop.

On Sunday, Rockford Police Chief Dan O'Shea said he believed Cox had fired his weapon during the incident, and police initially tweeted that they were on the scene of a "shooting involving an officer," at 1:20 a.m. Sunday.

Police said Cox made a brief radio transmission asking for assistance after making a traffic stop at around 1 a.m. in the area of State Street and Dawn Avenue. Officers who arrived on the scene minutes later found Cox with critical injuries and Patterson dead inside his pickup truck, which struck a tree in the parking lot of the nearby Unitarian Universalist Church, according to the State Journal-Register.

On Sunday, O'Shea said police believe that Cox scuffled with Patterson and "became entangled in the suspect's vehicle."

State police said Patterson's license had been revoked, and that Cox may have stopped him because the license plates on the pickup truck did not match the vehicle, according to the Associated Press.

Police on Monday said Cox's use of force is under investigation by the Winnebago/Boone County Integrity Task Force. "Additional details regarding the shooting will be released by the task force once their investigation is complete," police said in a statement.

Cox is the seventh Rockford officer to die in the line of duty since 1917, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. The six other officers were all killed by gunfire, according to the page.

Visitation for Cox, a graduate of Hononegah High School in nearby Rockton a member of the Army National Guard, is slated for 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday at First Free Evangelical Church, 2223 N. Mulford Road in Rockford. A law enforcement walkthrough scheduled for 6 p.m., police told the Chicago Sun-Times. Funeral services will begin at around 10 a.m. Saturday at the church, with a procession to immediately follow.

A police procession to escort Cox's remains from the Winnebago County Coroner’s Office to Fitzgerald Funeral Home was slated for 8 p.m. Monday. Police posted details of the movement on Facebook:

The Jaimie Cox Memorial Fund has been established at Alpine Bank, police said. "Rockford Police advises citizens that, at this time, the only authorized channel for donations to the family of Officer Jaimie Cox is the Jaimie Cox Memorial Fund," Rockford police said in a Facebook post. "Donations may be made at any Alpine Bank location."

Citizens are also advised to check and verify the legitimacy of donation requests before donating monies or sharing posts about donation sites.

Anyone with information on the incident is asked to contact the Rockford Police Department at 815-966-2900 or CrimeStoppers at 815-963-7867.