Man fatally shot by Tacoma police is identified by medical examiner
A 31-year-old man fatally shot by Tacoma police last month near a hotel downtown has been identified by the Pierce County medical examiner.
Steve Wohlwend, of Federal Way, died Feb. 24 of a gunshot wound to the torso, the Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office said in a news release Friday. The office ruled his death a homicide.
The police officer who shot Wohlwend has not yet been identified. Investigators from the Pierce County Force Investigation Team have said that police were responding that night to a report of a man with a gun at the Marriott Hotel at 1515 Commerce St. Officials said the man had pointed a gun at a valet and attempted to rob him.
Officers responded at about 10:45 p.m. At the hotel, police spoke with witnesses and the robbery victim to confirm there was probable cause to arrest the man.
A search of the area led police to the 1100 block of Dock Street near the 11th Street Bridge, the investigation team said in a news release. There, officers made contact with robbery suspect, later identified as Wohlwend. At 11:21 p.m., officers radioed that they had Wohlwend at gunpoint, but he was refusing to show his hands. One minute later, police shot him.
Officers administered first aid until Tacoma Fire Department arrived. The man was transported to a hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
A handgun was recovered from the scene.
It’s unclear where the Wohlwend’s hands were when police made contact with him or what happened in the minute before he was shot. The public information officers assigned for this incident, Sgt. Darren Moss of Pierce County Sheriff’s Department, said investigators will be reviewing body camera footage of the shooting.
This story was originally published March 7, 2022 at 8:00 AM.
