What began as late-night reports of an armed fight at a Pueblo park ended with a passenger shot and killed by police after officers tracked down a van tied to the call. Pueblo police say a passenger in the vehicle pulled a handgun, and an officer opened fire. The person was taken to a local hospital and later pronounced dead. A regional critical incident team is now investigating, and the involved officers, along with a dispatcher, are on administrative leave.
What police say
According to the Pueblo Police Department, officers were dispatched around 12:18 a.m. on May 14 after multiple callers reported a fight involving weapons at Drew Dix Park on Massari Road. By the time officers arrived, the people allegedly involved had left, but investigators obtained a description of a van connected to the reports.
Officers later located that van in the 0-100 block of Carousel Lane. Police say that as they contacted the occupants, one passenger brandished a handgun, and an officer fired at the person.
Scene and response
KKTV reported that first responders provided medical aid at the scene before the wounded passenger was transported to a nearby hospital, where they were later pronounced dead. The station also reported that the officers involved, along with one dispatcher, were placed on administrative leave while the shooting is reviewed by the 10th Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team, or CIRT.
Investigation and oversight
The Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office says the 10th Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team is a multi-agency unit that includes the sheriff’s office, the Pueblo Police Department, the Colorado State Patrol, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and the 10th Judicial District Attorney’s Office. The Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office notes that CIRT leads investigations of officer-involved incidents in the 10th Judicial District.
Early coverage in The Denver Post reported that the shooting followed a brief car chase before officers located the van. The police department’s public statement focuses on officers finding the vehicle on Carousel Lane and the passenger allegedly brandishing a handgun.
Context
The incident lands in the middle of an ongoing local debate over pursuit-related policing and how officer-involved shootings are reviewed. Earlier this year, Hoodline coverage of criticism after an 18-month probation sentence in a separate chase-related officer-involved shooting highlighted how outcomes in such cases continue to attract intense scrutiny in Pueblo.
