Police Shooting – Page 3

Police fatally shoot man in Flatbush, Brooklyn who allegedly flashed knife during questioning

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FLATBUSH, Brooklyn (WABC) —
Tensions boiled after officers fatally shot a man inside his East 21st Street apartment in Flatbush on Friday evening.

One officer was struck in the head after bottles were hurled at them.

Police sauy they were serving a warrant on a suspect wanted for multiple homicides after being tipped off about his whereabouts.

Investigators say officers were allowed into the apartment, and that is when they saw Vilmond Jean Baptiste, 38, hiding in the bathtub, fully dressed with his knife.

“The members from the warrant squad gave numerous commands to the male. They gave commands to get out of the tub, to show his hands, and then they realized that he was armed with a knife and then they gave him numerous commands to drop the knife,” said NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey.

The sergeant tried to deploy his taser, but the taser did not work. That is when the suspect came out of the bathroom with a knife and almost attempted to stab the sergeant.

Police officials say at least three officers discharged their firearms, striking Baptiste.

They say Baptiste is a strong person of interest in two separate homicides that resulted in the death of three people, including a stabbing in July where a 54-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man were both stabbed to death. Investigators say he is also the suspect in the fatal stabbing of a 66-year-old in Flatlands back in August.

“His M.O. seems to be he begins to date older women and then they allow him to reside in his house to use narcotics. The relationship was romantic in nature,” said NYPD Chief Kenney.

That victim was identified as Claudette Jones. She was found with multiple stab wounds inside her kitchen.

ALSO READ | Exclusive: Father outraged after 5-year-old girl left in van for 3 hours in Queens

CeFaan Kim has the exclusive interview with the child’s father.

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September 13, 2024

Denver Police shot one man in the arm amid a chaotic Saturday night in LoDo with multiple shootings

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A parked Denver Police cruiser. Sept. 30, 2021.

Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

After being shot in the arm by Denver Police, a 24-year-old man said “sorry” 12 times in half a minute, according to body-worn camera footage released by police on Friday.

It started around 2 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 3, as bars were closing in Lower Downtown. Officers responded to a gunshot, where a witness directed them to a man with a firearm in a parking lot at 19th and Market.

Officers contacted the man, who DPD declined to identify, at his car. They directed him to show his hands. He brought up a Glock pistol with the barrel pointed down at the ground, and officers ordered him to drop the gun.

But as the man moved to drop the gun, he appears to have accidentally pointed it directly at an officer, who then fired a single round hitting the man in the arm.

A screenshot from body-cam footage showing the man, whose face is blurred, standing behind his open driver's side car door and holding his gun in his right hand. — A screenshot from body-worn camera footage shows a man holding a Glock pistol with the barrel pointed down at the ground shortly before an officer shot him in the arm.

The man slumps against the side of his car as police move in, handcuff him and begin to render aid. At that moment another, unrelated gunfight breaks out nearby and officers ducked, yelling, “Get down, get down.”

(The unrelated shooting resulted in a different man being shot in the abdomen before fleeing in a car and crashing a few blocks away. He’s expected to survive. Police have identified the people involved, but no arrests have been made, and the incident is still under investigation.)

The man shot in the arm by officers, meanwhile, can be heard on the police body-worn camera saying, “I’m not a criminal, please.”

“You just pointed your f— gun at me, dude!” the officer shouts back. The suspect replies, “No, no, no, I put it down. Sorry. Sorry about that.”

As the officer is applying a tourniquet, the suspect says, “Please, bro. I’m not a criminal, bro. I was trying to save myself. Sorry brother, sorry.”

The man was not arrested, and DPD is not releasing the name of the officer who shot him.

Matt Clark, DPD’s commander of major crimes, said at a press briefing on Friday that when the man said “I was trying to save myself” he could have been referring to protecting himself from original shot fired that drew police to the area. The man was not arrested, but Clark said that is still under investigation.

That’s two or three different shootings within minutes in a small area that created a chaotic environment. Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said at the briefing that, thankfully, no one was killed.

“The tremendous number of guns in the metro area is a significant challenge, and one that we deal with every day,” Thomas said.

Reports of unlawful discharge of a weapon have more than doubled in Denver since 2019, according to a review of DPD data. The increase in illegal gunshot reports is partly due to an increase in the number of gunshot sensors in the city.

DPD did not name the officer who shot the man in the arm, but Clark said that the officer has been on the force since 2017 and is assigned to the anti-crime team in District 6, which includes downtown.

The officer is on modified duty while the shooting is under investigation by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado State Patrol, DPD’s homicide unit and the Denver District Attorney.

Crime in Lower Downtown, especially as bars close at 2 a.m., has long been a problem and has only escalated since the pandemic.

“That area has been chosen as one of our persistently violent hotspots,” Thomas said.

Thomas added that the department has focused efforts to reduce crime after bars let out. He said DPD has added officers to the area, improved lighting and moved rideshare locations away from the busiest areas.

“We recognize that when these crowds come out of these entertainment establishments and they congregate, the likelihood of violence erupting is quite likely, and so we work to try to disperse those crowds as quickly as possible,” Thomas said.

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August 16, 2024

Deputy who shot Sonya Massey thought her rebuke ‘in the name of Jesus’ indicated intent to kill him

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SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The deputy sheriff who fatally shot Sonya Massey in her Illinois home last month said he believed that when the Black woman who called 911 for help unexpectedly said, “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus,” that she intended deadly harm, according to the deputy’s field report released Monday.

“I interpreted this to mean she was going to kill me,” Sean Grayson wrote, adding that when he drew his pistol and Massey ducked behind a counter that separated them, he moved around the obstacle fearing that she was going to grab a weapon.

Grayson, a 30-year-old Sangamon County Sheriff’s deputy, faces first-degree murder, aggravated battery and official misconduct charges in the death of the 36-year-old Springfield woman on July 6 which has drawn nationwide protests over the killing of Black people by police in their homes. Grayson has pleaded not guilty. His attorney, Daniel Fultz, declined to comment Monday.

Massey’s family has called for the resignation of Sheriff Jack Campbell – who has refused to step down – arguing that problems in Grayson’s past should have precluded a law enforcement assignment. The family has hired civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who did not immediately respond to requests for comment by phone, email or text.

Grayson and a second unidentified deputy answered her call about a suspected prowler just before 1 a.m. Inside her home, Grayson directed that a pan of water be removed from a burner on the stove. Grayson and Massey shared a chuckle as he warily moved away from the “hot steaming water.”

“Sonya turned to face me holding the pot. I did not know the type of liquid that was boiling,” Grayson wrote in his report three days after the incident.

“I advised Sonya to put the boiling liquid down. Sonya stated (she) was going to rebuke me in the name of Jesus. She stated this twice. I interpreted this to mean she was going to kill me.”

Massey’s family has said that Sonya Massey struggled with mental health issues. She met the deputies at her front door by repeating, “Please God” and inside the house, asked Grayson to pass her a Bible.

Upon hearing the religious admonition, Grayson then drew his pistol and barked commands to “drop the (expletive) pot.” Massey ducked behind the counter, rose up and appeared to grab the pan again before diving for cover. Grayson said he stepped toward and around the counter to keep Massey in sight, wary that she might have a hidden weapon.

“As I approached the cabinet, Sonya stood up from a crouched position, grabbing the pot, raising it above her head and throwing the boiling substance at me,” Grayson reported. “I was in imminent fear of getting boiling liquid to my face or chest, which would have caused great bodily harm or death.”

It’s unclear from the video whether Massey attempted to toss the pan’s contents, and she was obscured from view when Grayson fired three 9 mm rounds, one of which struck Massey just below the eye. His report then indicates he looked down to see the liquid had “hit my boots and I observed steam coming from the cabinet area.”

By the time he completed the field report July 9, Grayson had been placed on administrative leave. The document indicates he received department permission to review the body camera video, the bulk of which had been recorded on the other deputy’s camera. Grayson said he thought his was on when the two first met Massey at the door, but he didn’t turn it on until just after the shooting.

The other deputy’s report was not part of the release, which included seven other officers’ reports of their activities at the site of the shooting and all completed on July 6 and one completed July 7, heavily redacted before release, by a deputy who had a casual conversation with someone who was familiar with Massey.

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August 5, 2024

Woman’s body found after partner shot, injured by Watsonville police

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WATSONVILLE — A woman who went missing Saturday in Watsonville has been found dead, according to police.

Lizbeth Arceo Sedano, 25, was found deceased in the area of Eureka Canyon and Grizzly Flat roads in Watsonville, police said Sunday.

Police had previously said they had “serious concerns” about her well-being after her partner, Joshua Gonzalez, was shot and injured by police on Saturday after he allegedly threatened to harm the couple’s 3-year-old daughter and attempted to attack a police officer. Sedano’s family said she was not responding to phone calls or texts, which was unusual for her.

Joshua Gonzalez was shot and injured by Watsonville Police on Aug. 3, 2024. His partner was found deceased and the sheriff’s department is investigating her death.

Watsonville Police Dept via Bay City News

At about 9:19 p.m., Gonzalez was outside of the Watsonville Police Department when he allegedly called dispatch and said he was armed with a knife and was going to hurt the child.

The first responding officer stepped out of his patrol car and ordered Gonzalez to drop the knife, according to police. Gonzalez allegedly ignored his commands and charged at the officer, who opened fire, shooting him.

Gonzalez was taken to a hospital and is in stable condition, police said. The child was unharmed and is now under the care of family members.

“On behalf of the Watsonville Police Department, we want to express our condolences to Lizbeth’s family and friends during this very difficult time,” said police Sunday.

The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office is investigating Sedano’s death.

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August 4, 2024

CMPD shooting of man ‘not mentally well’ was ‘entirely reasonable,’ DA Merriweather says

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Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers were “entirely reasonable” in shooting a man waiting on an involuntary commitment after he pointed a gun at his brother, District Attorney Spencer Merriweather, shown here, told the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.

John D. Simmons

jsimmons@charlotteobserver.com

His mother was waiting on police to take him away for treatment. She’d just finished filing paperwork with a judge that would allow officers to get him help — even if he didn’t want it.

It was a somewhat routine process. Sanrico Sanchez McGill had bipolar schizophrenia. He’d been diagnosed for nearly 10 years and involuntarily committed at least three times before, his brothers later told police.

This time, McGill had a gun. He shot it outside their apartment, his mother told police. His brothers said he’d shot two bullets into the air in response to two other shots nearby.

After officers showed up, McGill pointed it at one of his brothers. The other told police not to shoot.

Four Charlotte police officers responding to McGill’s mother’s calls shot at the 34-year-old 25 times on Dec. 16, 2023. One of them had taken him in under an involuntarily commitment order not six months earlier.

This time, two bullets struck him.

He probably would have survived the shot to his hip. It was the shot to his chest that killed him, Mecklenburg District Attorney Spencer Merriweather wrote in a Tuesday letter reviewing the shooting.

McGill died inside the home in north Charlotte’s Lincoln Heights. The gun, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officers later found, wasn’t loaded, and an empty magazine was on the sidewalk in front of the steps where McGill died.

“As you know,” Merriweather wrote to Brandon Blackman, the special agent in charge at the State Bureau of Investigation’s Harrisburg office, “this letter specifically does not address issues relating to tactics, or whether officers followed correct police procedures or CMPD Directives.”

CMPD has the power to review and change their policies, Merriweather said, but he does not.

Merriweather wrote that the officers were “entirely reasonable” in believing McGill posed an “imminent threat of great bodily harm or death to his brother.” When police are able to prove they sensed “an imminent threat,” they are also able to argue they acted in self-defense, history shows.

Officers were justified in shooting McGill, Merriweather wrote. Any charges brought against them wouldn’t hold up in court, he determined.

Merriweather continued: “If no criminal charges are filed, that does not mean the District Attorney’s Office believes the matter was in all respects handled appropriately from an administrative or tactical viewpoint. It is simply a determination that there is not a reasonable likelihood of proving criminal charges beyond a reasonable doubt unanimously to a jury.”

Merriweather has never brought a police shooting in front of a grand jury for review since being elected in 2017. The Mecklenburg District Attorney’s Office last did that in 2013 for the police shooting that killed Jonathan Ferrell. That case was later dismissed with a hung jury, and then-Attorney General Roy Cooper opted not to prosecute a case.

A mother’s calls

McGill’s mother called officers at 6:15 a.m. on Dec. 16, 2023, after she heard five shots in the parking lot outside a duplex at 1515 Catherine Simmons Ave. — “a densely populated area of Charlotte,” according to Merriweather. She thought McGill had fired them.

When officers arrived, McGill was inside. His mother told them he was “not mentally well” before they asked him, through a loudspeaker, to put his hands up.

He didn’t.

Instead, he came out “in an extremely agitated state,” yelled at his brother, went inside and came back out with a gun, racking the slide — a maneuver that loads a gun’s chamber — and pointing it at his brother, Merriweather wrote, referencing body-worn camera footage.

Officers Benjamin DeVries, Sean Werchek, Tymel Carson, and James Fisher didn’t know the firearm wasn’t loaded, Merriweather said. They only knew McGill was posing an imminent threat to his brother. That was enough to justify their shootings.

CMPD makes contact

SBI investigators interviewed Officer Werchek nearly two weeks after the shooting, on Dec. 29, 2023.

He remembered neighbors coming outside after hearing noise: officers and family members talking to McGill. When McGill first walked onto the front porch steps, his hands were empty but clenched, Werchek said, according to Merriweather’s letter. He remembered McGill “taking an aggressive stance” and “not acknowledging the officer’s commands at all.”

McGill was yelling, he said, but Werchek couldn’t understand what he was saying. He “did not speak with or engage with officers at any point,” Werchek said. He remembered Officer DeVries firing at McGill “at some point, while giving commands.” Werchek fired his gun when McGill appeared with a semi-automatic gun and raised it toward his brother and some officers.

Werchek thought he fired five times. He fired 11 bullets toward McGill.

“Officer Werchek explained that he fired more than one shot because he fired until the decedent no longer posed a threat,” Merriweather wrote. “He determined the decedent was no longer a threat when the decedent fell to the ground.”

Werchek had seen McGill before, he told investigators. Less than a year earlier, he’d taken McGill into custody for an involuntary commitment order without incident.

Investigators spoke to Officer Carson five days after the shooting, on Dec. 21, 2023. He’d been at CMPD for three months, and Werchek was his training officer. McGill was “acting in an irate manner” for about 30 minutes, Carson said. It wasn’t until officers shined a spotlight onto McGill that he went inside to get a handgun, Carson said. When he pointed it, it looked like he was aiming for officers and bystanders, Carson said.

Carson told McGill to “drop the gun” and fired his weapon. McGill fell to the ground, he remembered, then got up and went inside.

Carson remembered shooting at McGill five times. He shot 11 times.

Six days after the shooting, on Dec. 22, 2023, investigators interviewed Fisher, who provided cover to other officers during the incident by keeping his rifle pointed at McGill. Fisher recounted watching McGill leave the step, go inside and come back out. At this time, Fisher tried to tell Carson to turn off the blue lights on the police car. They were annoying McGill, he told SBI agents.

As he did that, he heard gunfire ring out. He thought they “were in the middle of a gunfight,” where McGill was firing at officers, he said. Fisher saw McGill in an “’interesting’ posture, like he was leaning or running,” he said.

He fired his rifle once.

SBI agents also interviewed DeVries on Dec. 22, 2023.

He didn’t remember what McGill had said, but he knew he ignored commands. He didn’t remember what commands officers gave but “suggested they would have been something to effect of ‘show your hands’ or ‘stop.’”

DeVries told investigators he “heard the slide rack,” which indicated a round is chambered, and saw McGill with the gun in his hand. “At that point, he made the decision to fire his rifle,” Merriweather wrote in the review. He felt he “was compelled to shoot, relying on his experience with firearms” and on his observations of McGill.

He fired two shots at McGill.

Brother told officers not to shoot

SBI officers interviewed McGill’s brothers, identified as “D.M.” and “C.M.” in Merriweather’s letter, the day of the shooting, on Dec. 16, 2023.

They told officers their brother had been diagnosed with bipolar schizophrenia for nearly 10 years. He’d been involuntarily committed three or four times and was supposed to be taken in again following a magistrate’s Dec. 15 order.

Officers can take up to 24 hours to serve involuntary commitment orders after they are issued.

The night before the shooting was “restless for everyone,” C.M. told investigators. McGill had episodes once or twice a year. This one consisted of McGill talking to himself, opening and shutting doors and yelling repeatedly.

Merriweather says remedies can’t come from him

“The fact that a shooting may be controversial does not mean that criminal prosecution is warranted,” Merriweather wrote in his review. “Even if the District Attorney believes a shooting was avoidable or an officer did not follow expected procedures or norms, this does not necessarily amount to a violation of criminal law. In these circumstances, remedies (if any are appropriate) may be pursued by administrative or civil means.”

Those remedies are primarily made through “city and county governments, police departments, and private civil attorneys.”

This is a breaking news story and may be updated.

This story was originally published July 30, 2024, 1:41 PM.

Julia Coin covers local and federal courts and legal issues after previously working as a breaking news reporter for the Observer. Julia has reported on fentanyl in local schools, the aftermath of police shootings and crime trends in Charlotte, and she occasionally photographs and reviews local concerts.. Michigan-born and Florida-raised, she studied journalism at the University of Florida, where she covered statewide legislation, sexual assault on campus and Hurricane Ian’s destruction.
Support my work with a digital subscription

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July 30, 2024

Carjacking suspect wounded in shooting involving Metro Transit Police in Rosslyn: Police – WTOP News

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A person suspected of a series of carjackings in the Rosslyn area was wounded in a shooting involving a Metro Transit Police officer, police said Friday.

A person suspected of a series of carjackings in the Rosslyn area was wounded in a shooting involving a Metro Transit Police officer, police said Friday. (Courtesy 7News)

A person suspected of a series of carjackings in the Rosslyn area was wounded in a shooting involving a Metro Transit Police officer, police said Friday.

Arlington County police said in a social media post the carjacking suspect has been taken to the hospital with serious injuries from a gunshot wound.

It was not immediately clear where the shooting took place. News cameras from WTOP’s partners at 7News showed a large police presence near 19th and Lynn Streets near the Rosslyn Metro Station.

This story is developing. A WTOP reporter is heading.

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Jack Moore

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July 5, 2024

Bloomington man in crisis taken into custody after shootout with Richfield police, BCA investigating

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Richfield police exchange gunfire with man in Bloomington

00:36

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating after Richfield police exchanged gunfire with a man going through a mental health crisis early Friday morning.

The shootout happened at a home on the 8700 block of 12th Avenue South in Bloomington, police say.

Bloomington police were responding to a separate burglary call, and Richfield police had stepped in to assist the department while the Bloomington officers were investigating the burglary.

Richfield officers responded to the suicide threat call and exchanged gunfire with the man in crisis shortly after arriving at the scene, according to Bloomington Police Chief Kim Clauson.

Bloomington’s crisis negotiators spoke with the man on the phone, and he came out of the residence around 4 a.m. He was taken into custody.

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If you or someone you know is in emotional distress, get help from the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. Trained crisis counselors are available 24 hours a day to talk about anything.

In addition, help is available from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI. Call the NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264 or text “HelpLine” to 62640. There are more than 600 local NAMI organizations and affiliates across the country, many of which offer free support and education programs.

WCCO Staff

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July 5, 2024

Family of 13-year-old killed in shooting by Utica, N.Y. police demands accountability

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The family of a 13-year-old boy who was shot and killed by police in central New York on Friday is demanding justice and accountability.

New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office is investigating the shooting of Nyah Mway, who was born in Myanmar and is a member of its Karen ethnic minority. Utica police said officers tackled the teenager to the ground and then shot him after a foot chase on Friday.

Police, who are conducting their own probe, released body camera video that showed a youth appearing to aim an object at them before they took him to the ground. The object was a BB gun that looked like an actual firearm, police said.

While the official investigations proceeded, Nyah Mway’s family and outraged community members demanded accountability for the death of the teen.

Mother of the 13 year old boy who was shot and killed by Utica Police cries — The mother of the 13-year-old boy who was shot and killed by Utica Police cries after listening to a translator inside City Hall in Utica, New York, U.S. June 29, 2024.

Daniel DeLoach/Utica Observer-Dispatch/USA Today Network via REUTERS

“We came to the United States, finally, to get the education and to get the good jobs here,” hoping for a peaceful life after decades of strife and violence in Myanmar, Lay Htoo, who identified himself as one of Nyah’s cousins, told the Associated Press in a phone interview.

The teen’s parents were waiting for medical examiners to release his body and wondering what would become of the officers.

“They want them to be in prison forever,” the cousin said.

At a vigil Saturday night, Nyah Mway’s brother, Lah, said through an interpreter that he wouldn’t be satisfied until the officers “are put in jail,” Syracuse.com reported.

Others at the vigil questioned officials’ account of the shooting.

“None of it adds up,” said Kay Klo, one of those at the gathering.

According to police, Nyah Mway and another 13-year-old boy were stopped Friday night because they allegedly fit descriptions of suspects in an armed robbery that happened the day before in the same area. Police said one was also walking in the road, a violation of state traffic law.

The body camera video shows an officer saying he needs to pat them down for any weapons. While officers were questioning the teens, one of them – later identified as Nyah Mway – ran away, turned and appeared to point a black item at them.

Officer Bryce Patterson caught up with Nyah Mway, tackled and punched him, and as the two wrestled on the ground, Officer Patrick Husnay opened fire, body camera video showed. Utica Police Chief Mark Williams said at a news conference Saturday that the single shot hit the youth in the chest.

The teenager was taken to Wynn Hospital, where he died of his injuries.

Police said the item the boy was holding was later determined to be a BB or pellet gun that closely resembled a Glock 17 Gen 5 handgun with a detachable magazine. Police released an image showing the device did not have an orange band on the barrel that many BB gunmakers have added in recent years to distinguish their products from firearms.

A bystander video posted to Facebook and obtained by CBS News also showed an officer tackling the teen and punching him as two other officers arrived, then a gunshot ringing out as the teen was on the ground.

Regarding that video, police said in a statement that it was “aware of a video of the incident circulating on social media platforms, which does not portray the incident in its entirety.”

Husnay, Patterson and Officer Andrew Citriniti were placed on paid administrative leave as the investigations go forward.

Under New York law, the attorney general’s office looks into every death at the hands of law enforcement. The Utica Police Department’s probe, meanwhile, will explore whether officers followed policies and training.

The police chief called the shooting “a tragic and traumatic incident for all involved.”

To Nyah’s cousin, Isabella Moo, however, the police narrative seemed like “trying to criminalize him a lot more and trying to protect the police officers.”

“The escalation of this should not have happened, and our police officers need to be trained a lot better or a lot differently,” she said to AP in a phone interview. “The city needs to be held accountable, and this should not have been done to any child.”

Utica’s population of 65,000 includes more than 4,200 people from Myanmar, according to The Center, a nonprofit group that helps to resettle refugees.

Karens are among groups warring with the military rulers of Myanmar, the Southeast Asian country formerly known as Burma. The army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021 and suppressed widespread nonviolent protests that sought a return to democratic rule.

Nyah’s family fled about two decades ago from Myanmar to Thailand, where Nyah was born in a refugee camp, and then immigrated through a resettlement program to the U.S. about nine years ago, Htoo said. He said the teen’s father works at a convenience store.

Htoo said Nyah was keen on math, soccer and spending time with friends when he wasn’t caring for his younger siblings. Interested in learning, he sometimes attended Bible study with his friends, though his family members are Buddhists, the cousin said.

The cousin said he’d been told that on Friday night, the boy informed his mother he was going to a store to buy something, and that was the last she saw of him.

She hasn’t slept since, except for 10-minute naps, her tears resuming every time she awakens, he said.

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June 30, 2024

Teen injured after officer fatally shoots dog outside Auburn home

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An officer shot and killed a dog that ran outside from a family home on Friday, while responding to the report of a missing teenager, according to the Auburn Police Department.The teenager was also injured in the incident. Officials said the officer responded to the home on Cedar Street around 9:20 p.m. after an 11-year-old child called 911 and said his 14-year-old sister had left the home while their parents were not there.The police department said an officer was walking to the front door when it opened with the 14-year-old girl inside. That’s when officials said the 140-pound dog charged toward the officer. Officials said the dog had its paws on the officer’s chest and was trying to bite them when the officer fired his gun. The officer shot four times, striking the dog twice.The police department said the dog retreated and died from its injuries. The officer had a minor dog bite on their hand, the police department said. The officer was not taken to the hospital.The teenager had a cut on her knee, which officials said may be due to a bullet fragment. She was taken to a hospital where she was treated for her injury.The Placer County District Attorney will investigate the incident. The police department said they did not initially share what happened with the public because “cases involving children and animals are often polarizing and create vitriol on social media.”See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app.

AUBURN, Calif. —

An officer shot and killed a dog that ran outside from a family home on Friday, while responding to the report of a missing teenager, according to the Auburn Police Department.

The teenager was also injured in the incident.

Officials said the officer responded to the home on Cedar Street around 9:20 p.m. after an 11-year-old child called 911 and said his 14-year-old sister had left the home while their parents were not there.

The police department said an officer was walking to the front door when it opened with the 14-year-old girl inside. That’s when officials said the 140-pound dog charged toward the officer.

Officials said the dog had its paws on the officer’s chest and was trying to bite them when the officer fired his gun. The officer shot four times, striking the dog twice.

The police department said the dog retreated and died from its injuries. The officer had a minor dog bite on their hand, the police department said. The officer was not taken to the hospital.

The teenager had a cut on her knee, which officials said may be due to a bullet fragment. She was taken to a hospital where she was treated for her injury.

The Placer County District Attorney will investigate the incident.

The police department said they did not initially share what happened with the public because “cases involving children and animals are often polarizing and create vitriol on social media.”

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May 13, 2024

Slain U.S. airman’s girlfriend witnessed deadly shooting on FaceTime, attorney Ben Crump says

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Cops kill airman in apartment mixup: Lawyer

Florida police storm wrong apartment, kill U.S. airman, attorney says

00:41

The girlfriend of a U.S. Air Force airman who was shot and killed by a Florida sheriff’s deputy last week witnessed the shooting over FaceTime, an attorney for the airman’s family and his mother said Thursday. The deputy has been placed on administrative leave, and a state agency is investigating the shooting.

Senior Airman Roger Fortson, 23, was on FaceTime with his girlfriend when he heard knocking on his door, saw no one through the peephole and got his gun, attorney Ben Crump said during a news conference. The deputy entered Fortson’s apartment, saw him with his gun and shot him, Crump said.

Fortson’s mother Chantimekki Fortson told reporters her son’s girlfriend was devastated from the shooting.

“She literally watched them walk over him as he was dying, taking his last breath,” Fortson said.

Crump didn’t identify the girlfriend but said she has an attorney.

“She was afraid that she just heard them and watch them kill her boyfriend,” Crump told reporters.

This photo provided by the U.S. Air Force shows Senior Airman Roger Fortson in a Dec. 24, 2019, photo.

U.S. Air Force via AP

The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office in the Florida panhandle said in a statement the unidentified deputy was responding to a disturbance call and acted in self-defense.

“All of us at the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office are saddened about the fatal officer involved shooting over the weekend,” Sheriff Eric Aden said in a statement.

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May 9, 2024

Bodycam footage of fatal Minnetonka shootout released

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Body camera footage showing Minnetonka shootout released

01:58

MINNETONKA, Minn. — The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday released body camera footage of a shootout in Minnetonka that left a man dead and two deputies injured.

Deputies with the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office went to a home on the 13000 block of Crestwood Drive East around 11:15 a.m. on April 10 to arrest a person wanted for multiple felonies. After deputies knocked on the door, 28-year-old Clint Hoyhtya — who was not the subject of the arrest warrant — started shooting with an assault-style rifle, according to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. Deputies returned fire before retreating to set up a perimeter.

The new footage shows four different deputies’ perspectives as they scramble for cover and work to stop the shooter. In the footage, you can never quite see Hoyhtya, but you can hear the intense gun battle. You can also see deputy Christopher Heihn get shot in the hand.

Less than a minute after knocking on the door, deputies are seen at the back of the house, demanding Hoyhtya show his hands before shots are fired.

Police later discovered Hoyhtya was wearing a tactical vest and body armor.

Right after one deputy says they need to evacuate neighbors, he sprints to his car.

“We got multiple officers pinned down,” the deputy can be heard saying.

After more shots ring out, the BCA says law enforcement shot and killed Hoyhtya. The Hennepin County medical examiner said he died of multiple gunshot wounds.

The BCA says Hennepin County sheriff’s deputies Heihn, Tyler Jacob and Keith McNamara fired their department rifles during the shootout. Deputy Steven Tomasko fired his department handgun.

The man deputies were looking for is in custody.

WCCO Staff

The WCCO Staff is a group of experienced journalists who bring you the content on WCCO.com.

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WCCO Staff

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April 24, 2024

LAPD reports 34 officer shootings in 2023, up from 31 in 2022

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LOS ANGELES — Officer-involved shootings and use of force increased by 10% and 25%, respectively, in 2023 compared to the previous year, according to a Los Angeles Police Department report released Tuesday.

During Tuesday’s Board of Police Commissioners meeting, Capt. Matthew Plugge, a commanding officer of the Critical Incident Review Division, led a presentation on the 2023 Use of Force Year-End Review.

The report showed that LAPD had 34 officer-involved shootings last year compared to 31 in 2022 and 70 occurrences of use of force compared to 53 in 2022.

Of the 34 officer-involved shootings, 13 of them, or about 38%, involved individuals “experiencing homelessness,” which represents a 12% increase compared to 2022 of such cases, the report showed.

Another 12 of those officer-involved shootings involved individuals “perceived to suffer from a mental illness and/or a mental health crisis.”

In 2023, 13 firearms were utilized by suspects while in other cases 12 edged weapons were used by suspects during officer-involved shootings, according to the report.

Of the 34 officer-involved shootings in 2023, 16 individuals died because they were shot by police, about 47%, 14 individuals sustained non-fatal injuries and four others were uninjured, the report said.

There were five officer-involved shootings involving animals in 2023, which was similarly reported in 2022.

There was three more cases where officers unintentionally discharged their weapons in 2023 compared to seven in 2022.

Plugge noted there was a 400% increase regarding in-custody deaths — there were five in-custody deaths reported in 2023 compared to one in-custody death in 2022. Of the five in-custody deaths, one of them was perceived to “suffer from a mental illness or a mental health crisis.”

In 2023, department personnel conducted two carotid restraint control holds against suspects, which was similarly reported in 2022. The use of this tactic — applied pressure to the sides of a person’s neck to render them unconscious or subdue them — is illegal. The state passed AB 1196 in 2021, prohibiting law enforcement agencies from using the tactic.

Regarding the department’s use of “non-categorical use of force,” officials reported 1,560 cases where such tactics were used compared to 2,213 in 2022, representing a nearly 30% decrease.

Additionally, 34% these cases involved a suspect believed to have been impaired by alcohol or other substances, and another 33% involved individuals “experiencing homelessness,” according to the report.

Non-categorical use of force mostly involves of “less lethal” tactics to subdue a suspect, such the use of a baton, beanbag shotgun, an officer’s bodyweight, strike, kick or punch, Tasers, among other things.

According to Plugge, this data speaks to the “effectiveness of the department’s commitment to de-escalation training and the restraint of officers have shown in instances when force was deemed necessary.”

The five-member board commissioners voted 4-0 to approve the report and hold further discussions at a future meeting. Erroll Southers, president of the commission, was absent from the meeting.

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City News Service

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April 23, 2024

Off-duty Chicago police officer shot to death while heading home from shift in Gage Park, CPD says

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CHICAGO (WLS) — An off-duty Chicago police officer was shot to death on the Southwest Side early Sunday morning, CPD said.

CPD Supt. Larry Snelling said the shooting happened in the 8th Police District as the uniformed officer was heading home from his shift.

Officers responded to a gunshot detection alert in the 5500 block of South Kedzie Avenue the city’s Gage Park neighborhood just before 3 a.m., Snelling later said in a statement. The officers toured the area and drove to the 3100 block of West 56th Street, where they found the off-duty officer, who had been shot multiple times.

During a press conference later Sunday morning, Snelling said the 30-year-old officer was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

CPD Supt. Larry Snelling said the shooting happened in the 8th Police District as the uniformed officer was heading home from his shift.

Snelling said the officer’s vehicle was taken following the shooting.

The officer had served with the department for six years, Snelling said. He was just two days shy of his 31st birthday.

A procession transported the officer from the hospital to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office later Sunday morning.

CPD said investigators are still looking for a suspect and that a motive for the shooting is still unknown.

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Christian Piekos

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April 21, 2024

Chicago police officers fired about 96 times over 41 seconds, killing Dexter Reed: VIDEO

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CHICAGO (WLS) — The Chicago Civilian Office of Police Accountability released bodycam video Tuesday of a deadly police shooting last month in Garfield Park.

Dexter Reed, 26, was killed by Chicago police on March 21 during a traffic stop that ended with dozens of bullets fired.

COPA said video footage and initial reports confirm that Reed fired first, hitting an officer. COPA said four other officers then returned fire. COPA said the officers fired approximately 96 times over 41 seconds.

A 23-year-old rookie officer fired at least 50 of those shots.

Reed was pulled over by five Chicago police officers along the 3800-block of West Ferdinand Street shortly after 6 p.m. on March 21.

Reed was stopped for a seatbelt violation, COPA said. The traffic stop ended with Reed’s SUV filled with at least a dozen bullet holes.

During the incident, Reed got out of his vehicle from the passenger side, and the police firing continued, as Reed was still allegedly armed. Video shows, at some point, Reed stops moving, and three shots appear to be fired by police after that.

The police deadly force policy is to continue firing until the lethal threat is stopped.

A second view of the shooting from a police bodycam shows the officer who was wounded in the wrist. He was on the passenger side of Reed’s vehicle.

Reed was critically wounded, and died at Mt. Sinai Hospital.

It is not known how many shots were fired initially by Reed. Although, sound on the video appears to indicate he fired multiple shots.

Chicago police said the injured officer was in good condition, and a gun was found at the scene.

At the time of the shooting, Reed was facing charges for allegedly carrying a gun in his pocket, while walking into a street festival.

He was in court on that gun charge less than two weeks before his fatal encounter with police.

Protest ensues after bodycam footage of Dexter Reed’s shooting death released

A group of demonstrators stunted Chicago traffic after bodycam video of the deadly police shooting was released Tuesday.

Meanwhile, raw anger over Dexter Reed’s deadly traffic stop dissolved a peaceful protest into confrontational chaos.

Dozens of demonstrators stepped off the sidewalk, rushing the intersection of west Harrison and Kedzie and stunting traffic.

Police intervention triggered the crowd. Many of those officers work at the same station as the four who shot and killed Dexter Reed.

“The 11th District, they should be accountable for everything they did, and I will not let them rest without suffering for what they did for my older brother,” said Porscha Banks, Dexter Reed’s sister.

Dexter Reed’s family is visibly haunted by the body camera footage they viewed Monday of his last moments on March 21. Speaking Tuesday afternoon, his mother collapsed, remembering her son’s last words to her.

The family of Dexter Reed spoke out Tuesday after he was fatally shot by Chicago police last month.

“He said ‘Mom, I’m going for a ride,’ and they killed him. They killed him! They killed him,” Nicole Banks said.

Outside COPA’s office on Tuesday, attorneys for Dexter Reed’s family gathered, calling for the tactical officers involved in the ill-fated traffic stop to be punished.

“I talked to Mayor Johnson on Sunday and explained to him that those officers need to be held accountable,” said Dexter Reed Sr., the father of Dexter Reed.

While never explicitly acknowledging, as both COPA determined, and the body cam video shows, that it was Reed who fired first, there was an attempt to explain what may have led to that reaction.

“If I was in that situation, I would be terrified. I wouldn’t know how to specifically react, other than to protect myself,” said Roosevelt Reed, Dexter Reed’s uncle.

Chicago police and oversight investigators have said the situation started as a traffic stop for a seatbelt violation initiated by a squad of tactical team, plain clothed officers.

“He made a conscious decision to fire first upon these officers, and if you look at video that shows the shooting from a distance, you can clearly see the officer leaning in and looking through the passenger side window of the vehicle when he is shot,” said Chicago Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara.

But the community doesn’t buy it.

“It’s ironic that not having a seatbelt was significantly less dangerous to Dexter’s life than five officers shooting at the brother,” one demonstrator said.

“Ninety-six shots. Ninety-six shots. How many does it take?” another speaker said.

The Chicago Fire Department said one woman was injured at the protest.

The woman was taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition, CFD said. It was not immediately clear how she was injured.

And as multiple investigations around another deadly police shooting play out, Mayor Brandon Johnson has been trying to offer reassurance.

At a press conference Tuesday morning, Johnson expressed his condolences for Dexter Reed, and said he is praying for the full recovery of the injured officer.

Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks after COPA released video showing the fatal shooting of Dexter Reed by Chicago police officers.

“All of us up here are making a firm commitment to collaboration to cooperation and to provide transparency for the people of Chicago,” Johnson said.

Johnson said the shooting occurred just blocks from his own community.

“It is not lost on me that both Dexter Reed and the officer could have been my students,” Johnson said.

Johnson said he will work with COPA and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office to provide transparency on the investigation.

“Shooting a police officer can never be condoned,” Johnson said. “Never condoned, never excused. I will never stand for that and neither will the city of Chicago. And we also have to be clear that we hold our police to the highest of standards.”

The conclusions and any recommendations regarding the shooting will come in a report from Chicago police that could take months to release.

In a statement Tuesday, the Chicago Police Department said, “This shooting remains under investigation by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) with the full cooperation of the Chicago Police Department. We cannot make a determination on this shooting until all the facts are known and this investigation has concluded.”

COPA First Deputy Chief Administrator Ephraim Eaddy released a statement, saying, “As an agency established on the core principle of reform, we take investigations into the use of deadly force and surrounding circumstances very seriously. COPA has the responsibility, as is noted in the Federal Consent Decree and Municipal Ordinance, to review every police shooting involving CPD officers. Each use of deadly force must be evaluated by examining the totality of circumstances, including the officer’s actions prior to the use of force. Accordingly, we will carefully review the actions of the involved police officers and their supervisors to determine whether training, policy and directives were properly followed. Our immediate investigatory steps included responding to the scene, viewing available body worn camera footage, and observing the collection of evidence, including shell casings and other ballistics evidence. As the investigation continues, COPA staff have canvassed the area, observed the autopsy of Dexter Reed, Jr., continued to identify and interview all witnesses, obtained, and reviewed all available video footage, and engaged with the Illinois State Police Forensic Science Laboratory in the processing and testing of all forensic evidence. COPA investigators have also provided briefings to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office (CCSAO), the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Department of Justice (DOJ), and sent a formal request to Superintendent Larry Snelling recommending the Chicago Police Department relieve four officers of their police powers during the pendency of this investigation. We have also been in contact with the family and will continue to provide updates as the investigation is ongoing.”

U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin released a statement Tuesday, saying: “The violence in this video is shocking. My heart goes out to Dexter’s family and friends, who are grieving the loss of his young life.”

“Our law enforcement officers protect and serve their communities with honor and courage and face many risks, but any who fail to follow the high standards they have sworn to uphold must be held accountable. As we continue to gather the facts surrounding this horrific incident, I am hopeful that a thorough investigation will be conducted in a fair and timely manner.

“These tragedies exacerbate and inflict trauma on the community, and we must continue to foster healing and support for neighbors, loved ones, and families exposed to this pain.”

U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth issued a statement, saying, “The video released today and the violence captured in it is shocking and disheartening. My thoughts are with the friends, family and loved ones of Dexter Reed as they continue to mourn his tragic death. I’m also hoping for a full recovery of the Chicago Police officer who was shot during this incident, and I share the Mayor’s view that attempting to murder a law enforcement officer must never condoned or excused.

“As the investigation into this horrible incident continues, we must allow it to play out fairly and responsibly. As that happens, we must also refocus our efforts to bolster investments in comprehensive crime prevention initiatives, enhance efforts to keep illegal firearms off the streets and strengthen accountability over the Chicago Police Department, which must continue the hard work of rebuilding trust through transparency.”

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Chuck Goudie

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April 9, 2024

Police ID suspects who they say tried to rob Prince George’s Co. GameStop before detectives intervened – WTOP News

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A Prince George’s County police officer shot someone after detectives surveilling a carjacked vehicle, watched two masked individuals get out, enter a GameStop and try to rob the store, according to authorities.

A Prince George’s County police office shot someone accused of robbing a GameStop in District Heights, police said.(WTOP/Mike Murillo)

Prince George’s County police have identified the three men accused of trying to rob a GameStop on Thursday, before police intervened and shot one of the suspects.

Kanard Bishop, 26, Edward Leroy Brown, 24, and Kahlill Boyd, 18, all of D.C., face armed robbery and other charges, police said in a news release Friday.

Police were in the 5700 block of Silver Hill Road in District Heights surveilling a carjacked vehicle just after 3 p.m. Thursday, when detectives saw two masked men get out, enter a GameStop and try to rob the store, according to Prince George’s County Police Chief Malik Aziz.

Bishop and Brown were armed when they entered the GameStop in the Penn Station Shopping Center, according to police.

The detectives followed the pair into the store and saw them behind the counter. When the detectives announced themselves as police, the masked men ran out the back of the store and into the parking lot, according to Aziz.

“A detective discharged his weapon, striking one of the suspects in the lower body, lower leg area,” Aziz said. “The officers provided emergency medical care to the injured suspect, who is now at the hospital receiving treatment.”

Brown has since been released from the hospital. Police said Friday he ran toward a detective before that officer fired their weapon.

No one else was hurt.

The officer who fired their weapon has been placed on administrative duty, Aziz said.

Aziz said the second masked individual, Bishop, was caught and taken into custody. A third man who stayed in the carjacked vehicle fled the scene after ramming it into an unmarked police car. The driver, Boyd, was later arrested in the District, according to police.

Police recovered two guns in the parking lot behind the GameStop, Aziz said.

The vehicle involved had been carjacked at gunpoint the day before the attempted robbery, according to police.

Aziz said his detectives were in the right place at the right time.

“We are fortunate that they were here. We don’t know what would’ve happened to the worker who was inside this business while these individuals were conducting a robbery,” Aziz said. “On this one, we were able to intervene. Of course, we would like no use of force to be committed here. We would like people to be taken into custody without incident.”

WTOP’s Mike Murillo contributed to this report.

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Thomas Robertson

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March 29, 2024

Ultimate sacrifice: Cop shot and killed in Queens during gun battle with suspect | amNewYork

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ALSO READ | Exclusive: Father outraged after 5-year-old girl left in van for 3 hours in Queens

The man was not arrested, and DPD is not releasing the name of the officer who shot him.

Crime in Lower Downtown, especially as bars close at 2 a.m., has long been a problem and has only escalated since the pandemic.

A mother’s calls

CMPD makes contact

Brother told officers not to shoot

Merriweather says remedies can’t come from him

Protest ensues after bodycam footage of Dexter Reed’s shooting death released

‘Stayed in the fight’

Authorities ID man who died after Fullerton officers shot him with bean bags, stun gun during arrest

Body camera shows what happened after police fatally shoot suspect in deadly Md. carjacking spree – WTOP News

What the body-worn camera footage shows

Tag: Police Shooting

ALSO READ | Exclusive: Father outraged after 5-year-old girl left in van for 3 hours in Queens

The man was not arrested, and DPD is not releasing the name of the officer who shot him.

Crime in Lower Downtown, especially as bars close at 2 a.m., has long been a problem and has only escalated since the pandemic.

A mother’s calls

CMPD makes contact

Brother told officers not to shoot

Merriweather says remedies can’t come from him

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Protest ensues after bodycam footage of Dexter Reed’s shooting death released