A Gilroy officer shot at a wanted felon when the fugitive sped
off from a traffic stop, endangering the life of another officer,
police said.
A Gilroy officer shot at a wanted felon when the fugitive sped off from a traffic stop, endangering the life of another officer, police said.
About 9:35 p.m. Wednesday, police officers were on the 100 block of Ronan Avenue in north Gilroy completing a narcotics-related investigation, police said. A car drove by in which the wanted felon – a parolee who police did not identify and who was wanted for violating the terms of his release – was a passenger.
The officers stopped the vehicle and an officer contacted the occupants, police said. While that officer, who police did not identify, was “at the front of the vehicle,” the driver tried to speed off. Another officer, observing the scene and feeling that the first officer was “in danger of being struck by the car,” fired an unspecified number of times at the car. It was unclear from a press release whether the officer shot at the wanted felon, who was said to be the passenger in the car, or at another person driving the vehicle.
Either way, “It was apparent to the officers that the suspects willingly tried to flee even after weapons were pointed at them,” a press release stated.
The suspects fled the scene and police gave chase, police said. The vehicle was found nearby, but the suspects were not located. There were several witnesses to the incident, and police interviewed them.
Police also did not identify the other alleged suspects in the incident.
Both officers are veterans and have been placed on “routine leave,” police said.
More details on this incident will be posted this afternoon.
If you have information about this incident, you can contact Detective Stanley Devlin at 846-0335 or leave an anonymous tip at 846-0330.
View Ronan Avenue shooting in a larger map
