Andrew Rothman
Member
St. Paul cop shoots, fatally wounds armed robbery suspect
Herón Márquez Estrada, Star Tribune
Published January 24, 2004
A St. Paul police officer shot and fatally wounded a man around 3:30 Friday in a parking lot near the Sears store on Rice St.
The man, who has not been identified, was pulled over in his car by the officer because he fit the description of a man wanted in connection with a recent armed robbery in Roseville. The robber in that incident slashed a grocery store employee with a knife.
As the officer approached the man's car, the man got out and threatened the officer with a knife, prompting the officer to shoot him several times, said police spokesman Paul Schnell.
The man was taken to Regions Hospital, where he died.
As is standard in such cases, the officer, who is yet to be identified, was placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation. Several witnesses were taken to police headquarters for questioning.
Roseville police had been working with St. Paul police to find a man who robbed the Rainbow Foods store at 1201 Larpenteur Av. in Roseville on Sunday evening.
The St. Paul officer, who has been on the force about five years, was on patrol when he spotted a man matching the description of the robbery suspect.
The officer directed him to pull into the parking lot, near the State Capitol. Because of the violent nature of the grocery store robbery, the officer drew his weapon as he exited his car, Schnell said. When the man came at the officer brandishing the knife, Schnell said, "he left the officer no choice."
After the shooting, blood was visible on the ground near the suspect's green Dodge Intrepid. A pair of eyeglasses, a black fedora and a knife also were strewn on the ground near the car.
Although the officer had a Taser on him, Schnell and Police Chief William Finney said that the circumstances made using the stun gun impractical.
Because the robbery suspect was thought to have committed a violent crime, Schnell said, department policy called for the officer to approach the suspect's car with his gun drawn.
"You're going to get out and start with your gun," Schnell said. "Deadly force first, until you know what you're confronting. You can reduce the force level later on [but] you need to be prepared to deploy that level of force.'
Finney agreed, suggesting that the man may have wanted to die.
"We got a robber and someone who knows what the inside of a prison is like, and I don't know that he wanted to go back," Finney said.
Herón Márquez Estrada is at [email protected].
Herón Márquez Estrada, Star Tribune
Published January 24, 2004
A St. Paul police officer shot and fatally wounded a man around 3:30 Friday in a parking lot near the Sears store on Rice St.
The man, who has not been identified, was pulled over in his car by the officer because he fit the description of a man wanted in connection with a recent armed robbery in Roseville. The robber in that incident slashed a grocery store employee with a knife.
As the officer approached the man's car, the man got out and threatened the officer with a knife, prompting the officer to shoot him several times, said police spokesman Paul Schnell.
The man was taken to Regions Hospital, where he died.
As is standard in such cases, the officer, who is yet to be identified, was placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation. Several witnesses were taken to police headquarters for questioning.
Roseville police had been working with St. Paul police to find a man who robbed the Rainbow Foods store at 1201 Larpenteur Av. in Roseville on Sunday evening.
The St. Paul officer, who has been on the force about five years, was on patrol when he spotted a man matching the description of the robbery suspect.
The officer directed him to pull into the parking lot, near the State Capitol. Because of the violent nature of the grocery store robbery, the officer drew his weapon as he exited his car, Schnell said. When the man came at the officer brandishing the knife, Schnell said, "he left the officer no choice."
After the shooting, blood was visible on the ground near the suspect's green Dodge Intrepid. A pair of eyeglasses, a black fedora and a knife also were strewn on the ground near the car.
Although the officer had a Taser on him, Schnell and Police Chief William Finney said that the circumstances made using the stun gun impractical.
Because the robbery suspect was thought to have committed a violent crime, Schnell said, department policy called for the officer to approach the suspect's car with his gun drawn.
"You're going to get out and start with your gun," Schnell said. "Deadly force first, until you know what you're confronting. You can reduce the force level later on [but] you need to be prepared to deploy that level of force.'
Finney agreed, suggesting that the man may have wanted to die.
"We got a robber and someone who knows what the inside of a prison is like, and I don't know that he wanted to go back," Finney said.
Herón Márquez Estrada is at [email protected].
