Police offer details on Derry Township fatal shooting

State police had been called to a Derry Township home that was the scene of a fatal shooting Saturday four times in less than a year for domestic-related complaints.

None of them resulted in any criminal charges, said Trooper Steve Limani.

“It’s not uncommon for us to go to a place because of a disturbance and then when we get there there’s no victim per se, to say that we need to make an arrest,” he said.

On Saturday, the fifth time troopers responded to the James Street address, the call was more serious — a newlywed reported her husband was in the basement firing a gun. She fled to a neighbor’s house.

When Ryan Huinker, 28, came out on the front porch after troopers and Latrobe police got there around 6:30 p.m., he did not have a gun in his hand, though authorities saw it tucked in his waistband, Limani said after watching body camera footage. They demanded he show his hands and surrender.

“He was very aggressive and refused all those commands,” Limani said.

A Taser failed to subdue Huinker. Gunfire was exchanged between him and police.

He was killed by police.

Limani declined to say how many times Huinker was shot, which police agency fired the fatal shot, if Huinker fired toward police or who shot first.

Troopers reviewed body camera footage, which will be part of the evidence they send along to the district attorney.

“It’s a shame that this situation escalated to that level, where I feel like it didn’t have to,” he said.

Once state police are done investigating, the district attorney’s office “will conduct an independent and extensive review of the evidence, police reports, available video/audio recordings, interviews and witness accounts and will determine if the use of deadly force was justified,” spokesperson Melanie Jones said.

The troopers involved in the shooting were placed on administrative leave per protocol, Limani said.

“Miraculously, none of the police officers were shot,” he said. “It’s something that no one got hurt.”

Neighbors on the quiet dead-end street at the border of Derry Township and Latrobe said they heard five to seven gunshots after police got there.

A marriage license indicates Huinker married Brittany Fassett on Nov. 6 at a district court office, according to Westmoreland County records.

Huinker listed a North Dakota address on the marriage license and reported being born in Minnesota. He was divorced from a previous marriage in February 2024 in Minnesota, according to records.

Limani said police are looking into why the couple moved into the area.