Police in St. Louis fatally wounded a 19-year-old when he stepped out of a vehicle, approaching the two officers while holding an Intratec 9mm pistol.
The teenager, who has not been identified, was a passenger in a stolen car, St. Louis Police Chief Sam Dotson said.
According to the St. Louis Dispatch:
Dotson said the red Chevrolet Monte Carlo the man was in had been reported stolen last month in south St. Louis. It was spotted about 9:45 p.m. by officers on a special patrol near Marcus and Cottage avenues in the Kingsway East neighborhood.
The car was being followed by officers when it hit a retaining wall near an alley. When two officers approached the car, Dotson said, the passenger got out holding a gun that had an extended magazine that could hold as many as 30 rounds.
The two officers instructed the suspect to drop the gun, but when he disregarded their orders, they opened fire. The teenager was critically wounded — he was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The driver of the stolen vehicle was taken into police custody.
The names of the police officers involved in the shooting have not been released, but Chief Dotson did say both officers, a 29-year-old and a 35-year-old, have been with the department about eight years. One officer is white and one is black — both men in the car were black.
The chief said there were witnesses to the shooting, including a woman who lived near where it happened.
Terramus Manley, 40, of St. Louis, said he witnessed the shooting as he was visiting a friend who lives at an apartment nearby.
He said he saw officers following the Monte Carlo, but not at a high speed. When the car stopped, Manley said, police pulled up behind and he heard officers yell “freeze, freeze, freeze, don’t move.”
Manley said the passenger got out, took about two steps and looked as if he was about to run. That’s when the officers fired, he said.
Manley said he didn’t see a gun but that right after the shots ended he heard the officers say “get the gun.”
An investigation continues.
SOURCE: St. Louis Dispatch | VIDEO SOURCE: News Inc.
