Violent confrontation at Walmart leads to police shooting
Sergeant Steven Anderson, PIO
Monday, December 4, 2023 9:15am
A police officer was shot and a suspect was killed during a violent confrontation at a Walmart in north Spokane.
December 3rdrdAt approximately 9:30 a.m., SPD officers were conducting a special shoplifting operation at the Walmart located at 9212 N. Colton Street.
An officer noticed a person attempting to shoplift items from Walmart and requested assistance from another officer before approaching the suspect. Reserve officers arrived on scene and officers approached the suspect as he attempted to exit the store by walking past all the departments.
As officers approached the suspect, a physical confrontation ensued that lasted for an extended period of time. According to preliminary information, a Taser was attempted to be fired, but a physical confrontation between the officer and the suspect continued.
The police-involved shooting occurred just before 10:20 a.m. Life-saving measures were administered, but the man succumbed to his injuries.
During the early stages of the preliminary investigation, officers recovered what appeared to be a firearm and ammunition. The officers sustained minor injuries in the encounter, and at least one officer was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation.
Officer involvement protocols were established and the Spokane Independent Investigation and Response Team (SIIR Team) responded to the scene. Their investigation is in its preliminary stages and additional information will be released as needed.
The identity, cause and manner of death of the deceased will be released by the Spokane County Coroner’s Office.
The SIIR team is comprised of multiple agencies in Eastern Washington, including the Spokane Police Department, Washington State Patrol, Spokane Valley Police Department, and Spokane County Sheriff’s Office.
Per standard procedure, the Spokane police officer who fired the gun was placed on case review leave. The officer was equipped with a body camera at the time of the incident.
Fortunately, no unrelated residents or store employees were injured in the incident.
As an agency, Spokane Police Department personnel are not involved in this investigation pursuant to WAC 139-12.
-The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office is the case management agency for this case.
– All future communications will be sent via the SIIR team.
-The Spokane Police Department will release the names of the officers involved at a later date.
– Once the SIIR team completes its investigation, the case will be sent to the Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office for review.