Wounded Callaway County deputy leaves hospital after I-70 fatal officer involved shooting

A Callaway County deputy was home safe Wednesday after he was injured in a shooting Monday morning on Interstate 70. Law enforcement agencies and first responders from the Callaway and Boone County areas honored Corporal Justin Bax as he left Columbia’s University Hospital.

Bax was shot in the upper right arm during a traffic stop that turned into a shootout. Bax stood beside his family as he left the entrance of the MU Health Care Children’s Hospital. Doctors put a metal plate and screws in his upper right arm after bullets damaged his arm muscles. Bax will return to the hospital in about six weeks after having physical therapy at home. First responders showed their respect for Bax’s bravery as he rode home in a sheriff’s vehicle.

Callaway County Sheriff’s Spokeswoman Crystal Kent said, “We are a small family at the Callaway County Sheriff’s Office. All of the surrounding agencies make the ginormous family. I always look at them as our cousins, our aunts, and our uncles. We all come together when a family is in need.”

37-year-old Jonathan Beason of Medina, Texas opened fire during the traffic stop. Bax and Deputy Gardner Pottorff returned fire. Beason died at the scene. Pottorff remained in the hospital recovering from four gunshots to the stomach.

Kent said, “When they said that our blood runs deep, they are not lying. All of us first responders come together in a situation like this. It doesn’t matter if you’re a firefighter, a dispatcher, or an EMS. We are all together in this.”

The families of both deputies were working with the Chief Mason Griffith Foundation to raise money for the wounded deputies. 100% of the donations, except for standard credit card fees, will go to the deputies and their families.