State trooper shot to death near Canton

CANTON — A state Highway Patrol trooper was shot and killed Tuesday night during a traffic stop on Interstate 40 near Canton.

The Asheville Citizen-Times reports that a patrol spokesman said Trooper David Shawn Blanton was shot twice. He was taken to Mission Hospitals, where he died.

Blanton, who was from Cherokee, was a two-year veteran of the patrol. He was married and had one child.

Patrol First Sgt. S.D. Greene, public information officer for the patrol, confirmed early Wednesday morning that the trooper had died. Greene said Blanton reported that he had stopped a vehicle at 10:20 p.m., and that a passerby called to report that Blanton had been shot.

A suspect was apprehended and taken to the Haywood County jail.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)