A man shot by a Denver Police Department officer on Tuesday was pointing a rifle at people from an alleyway, department officials said.
Police officers responded to the 1000 block of South Quitman Street at 3:41 p.m., Chief Ron Thomas said at a briefing Tuesday night.
Officers tried to de-escalate the situation for more than an hour. The man hid behind objects in the alley between Quitman and Perry streets and intermittently pointed the gun at people “throughout this entire situation,” Thomas said.
When the man started moving toward an officer and did not follow commands to drop his weapon, the officer shot him multiple times.
PRESS CONFERENCE: police Chief Ron Thomas will provide an update to the officer-involved shooting that occurred in the 1000 Block of S Quitman St.
— Denver Police Dept. (@DenverPolice)
The man was taken to the hospital by ambulance. Additional information about his condition was not available Tuesday night, but he likely lives in the area, Thomas said.
There were already a large number of officers and first responders nearby because the confrontation was turning into a barricade situation, Thomas said.
The man did not fire his gun, and no officers were injured.
Denver homicide detectives, the Colorado State Patrol and Colorado Bureau of Investigation will investigate the shooting and present the results to the Denver District Attorney’s Office, Thomas said.
