PUBLIC SAFETY

State police release account of Sunday rampage through Marion County, police shooting

A Washington man fired shots throughout the Salem area Sunday night, twice shooting at officers and leading police on a morning SWAT Team search that ended with one officer shooting the man in an east Salem business district, the Oregon State Police announced in a news release Monday night.

Police have linked Andrew E. Kjostad, 34, to three separate shootings in less than three hours Sunday throughout Marion County, according to the agency’s statement.

State police provided the following account of the Sunday night shootings and the pursuit that resulted in police shooting Kjostad.

Around 5 p.m., the Woodburn Police Department responded to a report of shots fired on Young Street in downtown Woodburn. A traffic camera captured a man driving a white GMC Envoy with no license plates in that area at the time.

Then, at 7:38 p.m., a Marion County Sheriff’s Office sergeant was patrolling Lancaster Drive in Salem when his patrol car was struck by gunfire.

The sergeant stopped to inspect the car and saw an SUV matching one in the earlier shooting fleeing south.

About a minute later, two Salem police officers were patrolling Northeast Silverton Road when they heard multiple popping noises.

A traffic camera captured a driver of the same vehicle shooting toward the officers, and a witness reported seeing the man shoot at least twice from the driver’s seat.

Investigators identified Kjostad as being associated with the vehicle and started actively looking for him in the early Monday morning hours.

“Once located on Fisher Road in Salem, Kjostad ran from officers and was shot by a Salem Police SWAT officer during the attempt to apprehend him,” according to the state police’s news release.

Police found a .45 caliber handgun lying near Kjostad.

The Salem police identified the officer who shot Kjostad as Cpl. Adam Waite, who has been at the department for 15 years.

Waite was one of five officers who on Jan. 23 shot and killed Michael J. Compton in a morning gunfight in a south Salem business district. A Marion County grand jury unanimously found all five officers justified in the shooting.

Kjostad suffered a gunshot wound and was taken to Salem Hospital, where he remained as of Monday night.

The department said it would not provide additional information about Kjostad’s condition.

No officers were injured in any of the incidents.

Waite has been placed on paid administrative leave. Marion County requires that “involved officers” – which under state law includes both officers that fire shots or witness another do so – be placed on paid administrative leave during investigations.

The Oregon State Police are the primary agency conducting use of a deadly force investigation. The county requires that an uninvolved law enforcement agency conduct such investigations.

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office, Woodburn Police Department and Keizer Police Department are also helping with the investigation.

Court records showed Kjostad is a resident of Bremerton, Washington.

He has convictions in Marion County Circuit Court dating back to 2009, including unauthorized use of a vehicle, failure to report as a sex offender and possession of a burglary tool or theft device.

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Contact reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.

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Ardeshir Tabrizian has covered criminal justice and housing for Salem Reporter since September 2021. As an Oregon native, his award-winning watchdog journalism has traversed the state. He has done reporting for The Oregonian, Eugene Weekly and Malheur Enterprise.