Fatal shooting involving Centralia police officer being investigated by new state office
A Centralia police officer fatally shot a man during an altercation on Sunday morning, and the new Washington State Office of Independent Investigations will be looking into the deadly use of force.
According to a news release from the Centralia Police Department, police were called to an alleged domestic dispute at 10:56 a.m. Jan. 12 in the 400 block of North Ash Street. The first arriving officer made contact with a man, and the two got into a physical fight.
The officer discharged their firearm, striking the man. The man received emergency medical treatment at the scene, but he died.
The officer was injured in the fight, according to the release. No bystanders were injured.
The involved officer has been placed on leave while the incident is being investigated, according to the news release. In compliance with RCW 43.102, Centralia police notified the Washington State Office of Independent Investigations, which will investigate the incident. Spokesperson Hector Castro said the OII was notified of the incident at 11:21 a.m. Sunday.
This is OII’s second use of deadly force case since it began actively investigating incidents on Dec. 1. Castro said the first was in Vancouver, and that case is still under investigation.
As part of the Centralia Police Department’s body-worn camera program, video captured by body-worn cameras will be reviewed and released later.
In compliance with the state statute, Centralia officers will not be involved in the investigation. All future communications about the incident will come from the OII.
The OII will eventually release the names of the involved officers, and the Lewis County Coroner will release the name of the man who died. Once the OII investigation is complete, the case will be forwarded to the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office for review.
The news release mentioned a number of area departments that responded to the incident, including the Chehalis Police Department, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Patrol, Riverside Fire Authority, and AMR.
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