Man who shot himself after chase, shootings had just been released on probation

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The man accused of shooting two of his family members, leading a police chase and shooting at law enforcement before shooting himself on Thursday finished a 120-day shock incarceration program with the Department of Corrections about a week before the shooting.

According to the Boone County Sheriff's Office, 32-year-old Steven Swanson allegedly shot two people at a home in northern Boone County on Thursday afternoon. A 35-year-old man was pronounced dead and a 65-year-old woman had serious injuries in the 5100 block of North Douglas Drive.

Swanson then fled the scene, leading a police chase on Highway 63. Law enforcement eventually stopped Swanson's Ford Bronco, and Swanson fired a shot at a Missouri State Highway Patrol car before he shot and killed himself, law enforcement says. The medical examiner will determine Swanson's cause of death.

Previous reporting shows Swanson was accused of stabbing his brother in the leg in October 2025. He pleaded guilty in that case on Dec. 22 to third-degree assault. He was ordered to serve five years of probation and completed a shock program of 120 days with the Department of Corrections.

He also pleaded guilty to second-degree domestic assault in December. 

He was released April 30 and was ordered to serve five years of probation and on the condition that he attend alcohol treatment through the Department of Probation and Parole. He had a suspended sentence of seven years.

Boone County Prosecutor Roger Johnson couldn't provide a specific comment on why Swanson received that sentence, but he was able to explain the program.

"With the 120-day shock program, if they successfully complete that and essentially don't have violations while they're in the Department of Corrections, they can, at the end of that time, come out and be on probation for the remainder of their sentence," Johnson said.

He said there are a lot of reasons why a person could be given this sentence, but it's hard to narrow down one reason without looking at the case details.

"It's very fact specific, and it depends on the particulars of the case," Johnson said. "It's just a sentence that is available within the full possible universe of sentences that are available as a disposition in a criminal case."