Washington County coroner to convene inquest into death of man shot by police
Washington County Coroner Timothy Warco announced Monday that he will convene an inquest into the death of a Coraopolis man who was shot by police earlier this month.
Eduardo Lee Hoover Jr., 38, died on April 2 after officers from both Smith Township and Mt. Pleasant police departments fired into his vehicle in the 1000 block of Jefferson Avenue in Washington following a pursuit.
An inquest will lay out the available evidence in court to determine Hoover’s cause and manner of death. Deputy Coroner Matt Yancosek said they have not determined what shape the inquest will take, or if a judge or jury will consider the evidence.
“It’s something that we like to do in situations where we think there is benefit in making the facts of the situation known to the public, in the interest of transparency,” Yancosek said.
According to Yancosek, inquests do not happen often, and this is the third he has been involved with in the past 10 years. He noted that the process can move slowly.
“It will be a while before we have an actual date on the inquest,” Yancosek said.
Smith police had attempted to pull Hoover over for reckless driving when the chase began, state police said at the time.
According to police, Hoover was driving his car in reverse toward police officers when shots were fired. Police did not specify how many times Hoover was shot.