A Tacoma police officer who shot and killed a man in the city’s Hilltop neighborhood Friday has been identified as Keith O’Rourke, a six-year veteran of the department.
Officials initially said O’Rourke, 40, had been involved in prior police shootings. On Tuesday, police spokesman Mark Fulghum said the officer had been present at two other officer-involved shootings but never fired his gun.
O’Rourke has been placed on paid administrative leave, which is standard procedure after a police shooting. Detectives are scheduled to interview the officer later this week, Fulghum said.
Police Chief Don Ramsdell has said O’Rourke appears to have acted within department guidelines when he fatally shot 29-year-old Prince Jamel Gavin during a short confrontation in the 800 block of South M Street.
The incident began with a domestic violence call in another part of town that led police to South M Street, where Gavin reportedly lived.
O’Rourke spotted Gavin drive up, get out of a truck and run toward the house with a gun in his hand. Gavin turned around while standing on the front porch and the officer fired his gun twice, feeling threatened. O’Rourke was in the middle of the street when he shot Gavin once in the chest.
Investigators found a .45-caliber handgun by Gavin’s body.
Gavin was a soldier who had been assigned to Joint Base Lewis-McChord but was in the process of transferring to another base.
stacia.glenn@thenewstribune.com
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