White barricaded himself in his home and garage on Wednesday afternoon, threatening to shoot anyone who came near him.
"A lot of threats were made," Boone County Sheriff Rodney Miller said.
Miller told reporters that he recognized White from community and social gatherings in Boone County.
Miller confirmed reports that Jessie White's daughter and estranged wife spoke with Miller earlier that morning prior to the standoff with concerns about Jessie White's behavior.
According to reports by the Boone County 911 Center, the standoff began at approximately 1:30 in the afternoon.
"We were told to shut Route 17 down," Kevin Dalton, a spokesperson with the Spruce River Volunteer Fire Department told the Coal Valley News at 3:00 p.m.
A road block was set up at Ottawa Bridge, located near Lumberjacks Hardware Store on Spruce River Road/Route 17.
Area residents and media witnessed what sounded like approximately 100 gun shots during the standoff.
"It was awful. I have never heard anything like it. It sounded like 500 gun shots. At three different times there were shots fired," area resident Ida Fay Barker told the Coal Valley News.
At approximately 11:00 p.m. White's daughter was heard crying in a loud voice, "Daddy's dead. He's dead."
According to Miller, preliminary reports suggest that White's death was caused by a self-inflicted gun wound.
No other injuries or fatalities were reported.
Initial reports that White had his wife held hostage were discounted by officials.
When asked to comment on reports that phone lines were disconnected between family members and Mr. White during negotiations, Miller said, "Absolutely not. The phone lines were busy and we may have had some re-routed calls.
"As you know, it's a situation were a lot of tales are told and not all are factual.
"At this time we are treating this as a crime scene," Miller said.
Crime scene units remained on scene into the early hours of Thursday morning.
Contact Joanie Newman at jnewman@coalvalleynews.com or call 304-369-1165.
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