Suburban St. Louis officer sentenced for shooting into car

CLAYTON, Mo. (AP) — A suburban St. Louis police officer who shot into a fleeing car, seriously injuring the driver, has been sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to give up his police officer’s license. Forty-year-old Christopher Gage was sentenced Wednesday. He was a Velda City officer in February 2020 when he and his partner stopped a car for expired tags. Prosecutors said the driver fled after the officers said they found marijuana in the car. The officers fired at the car, hitting the driver, who crashed. As part of a plea deal, charges of first-degree assault and armed criminal action were reduced to unlawful use of a weapon.