Essential Estrogen

A man is dead today and a law enforcement officer has been placed on paid administrative leave following a shooting in Perry.

At roughly 7 a.m. the Perry Police Department was notified by a woman that Mark Allen Holcomb, 52, of Perry was considering acts of self-harm. About 90 minutes later, law enforcement located Holcomb at Holcomb Body Shop, 904 Center St. Perry Police officers Pat Jans, Jerome Hill and Josh Sparks were accompanied on the scene by Dallas County Sheriff's Deputy Tom Peterson. Together, the law enforcement officers initiated contact.

Witnesses have stated Holcomb drew a handgun and shot himself while the officers were present. Witnesses also indicated that Jans fired a single shot during the incident.

Preliminary investigation has indicated that Jans did fire one round. Following internal policies, the Perry Police Department has placed Jans on paid administrative leave. He will remain in that capacity until the State of Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation completes its investigation of the deadly shooting.

The State Medical Examiner has scheduled an autopsy of Holcomb's body for tomorrow morning. The DCI has indicated there will be more information released following the autopsy.