Joshua Smith

Police shot Joshua Smith, 35, during an exchange of gunfire in the 1500 block of Cascade Lane in the Windswept Farms subdivision, south of Eureka's downtown. Officers were called to the home to respond to a domestic disturbance. Eureka police and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, which is handling the investigation, were still at the scene of the shooting Friday morning, blocking off Cascade Lane. Sheriff's deputies were scanning the scene of the shooting with metal detectors. In an interview, Eureka police Chief Mike Werges said crews, 14 hours after the shooting, were mapping where every bullet was recovered. "It's kind of a large crime scene, a lot of shots fired," Werges said. "They are working through the scene to make sure they recover every projectile, figure out where it came from, who shot it, whether it was an officer or whether it was the suspect," the chief added. "That just takes time." On Thursday evening, Eureka police were responding to a call for help from Smith's wife when "Smith began firing multiple rounds from inside the residence toward officers," Werges said in a release. "Several nearby residences and vehicles were struck by gunfire." Smith came out of the home armed with a semiautomatic handgun, the chief said. Smith ran toward the police, and officers fired at him, killing him. Police haven't said how many shots in all were fired, by Smith or officers, or how many times Smith was hit. Smith lived with his family at the home, Werges said. None of the officers, Smith's wife or young son was injured, Werges said.