A Tacoma police officer shot and killed a man Friday afternoon in Tacoma’s Hilltop neighborhood, Police Chief Don Ramsdell said.
The officer, who’s been on the force for about five years, felt threatened by the man and fired two shots at him following a brief confrontation in the 800 block of South M Street, Ramsdell said.
Investigators later found a .45-caliber handgun near the dead man’s body, the chief said. It was not clear whether the man pointed the gun at the officer.
Ramsdell said investigators will interview the officer in the coming days to get his account of what happened. The officer is on paid administrative leave, which is routine whenever an officer employs deadly force on the job.
The incident began as a domestic-violence call at an apartment building in the 1400 block of South Mildred Street, Ramsdell said.
Officers dispatched there found no one but knew that one person reportedly involved lived at the M Street address, the chief said.
A different officer was sent there.
He had just arrived when a truck pulled up and a man jumped out, Ramsdell said. The man saw the officer and ran to a nearby house. He turned at one point and a confrontation ensued.
“The officer felt threatened at a certain point in time,” Ramsdell said.
The officer, who was in the middle of the street, fired at the man as he stood on the porch. The man collapsed and died at the threshold.
The dead man was in his late 20s and might have been an active-duty member of the U.S. military, the chief said. He did not know what branch.
Ramsdell said initial indications were the officer acted reasonably and within department guidelines for using deadly force.
It was the second time the officer has been involved in a shooting, Ramsdell said. The chief said he did not know the details of the previous shooting.
adam.lynn@thenewstribune.com
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