ISP: Alexandria woman allegedly shoots self in police vehicle

GAS CITY, Ind. (AP) — Indiana State Police on Sunday were investigating the death of a 32-year-old woman who allegedly shot herself while sitting in a police vehicle during a crash investigation.

ISP said Sunday that Amanda Elbert of Alexandria, Indiana, was not in custody and used a gun that was in her purse.

Elbert was in a car that crashed Saturday into a utility pole near Gas City, north of Muncie. The car’s driver allegedly fled before police arrived.

Elbert was allowed to sit in the front passenger seat of a police vehicle to keep warm. As officers were conducting an inventory of the crashed car, they heard a gunshot. Elbert was pronounced dead at the scene.