Citronelle, Ala. – After weeks of speculation, city officials have confirmed that Officer Dylan Chase Owen, 26, died from a self‑inflicted gunshot wound inside his patrol car on May 14, not in the single‑vehicle crash initially reported.
Family demands transparency
The Owen family released a statement to FOX10 News calling for full disclosure of the facts surrounding their loved one’s death. They emphasized that they are not seeking special treatment, only an honest accounting of what happened, why it happened, and whether all agencies involved have fulfilled their legal responsibilities.
Initial reports described a crash
At a May 14 news conference, Mayor Jason Stringer and Police Chief Chris McLean told reporters the incident was being investigated as a traffic accident. When asked directly whether the death might have been a suicide, the reporter received a non‑committal response: “At this time, you know, it’s being investigated as a crash scene… If more information is released, we’ll release more information.” Chief McLean added, “It was a traffic accident,” and later said, “All that’s still under investigation.”
Investigations reveal a death investigation
Subsequent inquiries by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) showed that a State Bureau of Investigation death inquiry was opened the same day Owen died. ALEI confirmed there was never a crash report; the case was handled as a death investigation. In June, ALEA told FOX10 News, “There is no crash report relative to this incident, everything will be covered under ALEA’s SBI Death Investigation.”
FOXI0’s findings
FOX10 Investigates independently verified, through Owen’s family and multiple law‑enforcement sources, that the officer died of a self‑inflicted gunshot wound while in his patrol car. The officer had served the Citronelle Police Department for just over two years and graduated at the top of his class from the Mobile Police Academy.
City’s response and upcoming news conference
Following the release of these findings, Mayor Stringer announced a news conference for 6 p.m. on the day of this report to address the case. When contacted, Chief McLean said he could not comment at that moment and would return the call. Mayor Stringer later indicated that the family had asked that the cause of death not be released in the days after the incident.
Calls for accountability
The family’s statement stresses that truth should never be negotiable and accountability should never be optional. They assert that grieving families should not have to fight for basic facts about a loved one’s death.
Ongoing investigation
As of today, 162 days after Officer Owen’s death, the Mobile County District Attorney’s Office has not received ALEA’s final report. Both the DA’s office and ALEA declined to comment further on FOX10’s findings. City Clerk Lori Bryan relayed that the investigation remains pending and that requested records are being withheld while evidence is still being gathered.
Resources
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. FOX10 News will stream the upcoming mayoral news conference on the FOX10 Gulf Stream and its Facebook page.
Original reporting: FOX10 WALA Mobile (news) — read the source article.
