[chris]

A gunman opened fire on the Latah County Courthouse in Moscow, Idaho, late on the night of May 19, 2007, killing a police officer and setting off a standoff that lasted until dawn and left three people and the shooter dead.

Authorities identified the gunman as Jason Hamilton, 36. Investigators said he shot and killed his wife, Crystal Hamilton, 30, at their home around 10 p.m., then drove into downtown Moscow with two high-powered rifles.

About 11:22 p.m., Hamilton began firing on the courthouse, which housed the county's emergency dispatch center, according to police. Investigators believed he had raked the dispatch center to draw officers into the open. Moscow police Officer Lee Newbill, 48, was among the first to respond and was shot and killed as he arrived. He was the first Moscow officer killed in the line of duty.

Hamilton then took up a position on the grounds of the First Presbyterian Church across the street. Paul Bauer, 62, the church caretaker, called 911 from the church office and was fatally shot, authorities said. A Latah County sheriff's deputy, Brannon Jordan, was wounded as he tried to reach Newbill, and Pete Husmann, a 20-year-old University of Idaho student who ran toward the gunfire to help, was also hit. A second Moscow officer was struck by bullet fragments.

The shooting continued into the early hours of May 20. Investigators estimated Hamilton fired well over 100 rounds from an AK-47 and a Springfield Armory M1A rifle during the night. Around 1 a.m., a single shot was heard from inside the church. A SWAT team entered about 6 a.m. and found Hamilton dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Court records showed Hamilton had a history of violence. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor after he was accused of choking a girlfriend in 2005, and the terms of his probation barred him from having firearms. He was arrested in April 2007 for violating that probation and had appeared in court days before the attack. Authorities said he bought the M1A rifle from a Washington state dealer before the conviction made it illegal for him to own guns.

No note was found, and investigators said they never established a motive. "I don't think we'll ever know," Moscow Police Chief Dan Weaver said. Newbill, an Army veteran who had served six years on the force, was survived by his wife and three children.