Suicidal man with gun killed by police

Waukesha officers fired after commands disobeyed, chief says

Waukesha police officers shot and killed a suicidal man armed with a gun after more than an hour and a half of trying to calm him down, Police Chief Russell P. Jack said Monday.

A woman called police shortly after 8 p.m. Sunday to report a man had been drinking alcohol, wanted to kill himself and was armed with a gun in the backyard of a home in the 2000 block of Sunkist Ave., according to a news release from Jack.

Officers from Waukesha and New Berlin, as well as Waukesha County Sheriff’s deputies, went to the house and tried to establish a “good rapport” with the man, who was armed with a handgun for more than 90 minutes.

At some point, the man “disobeyed officers’ commands” and officers fired, the release says.

Officers then provided medical aid to the man, whose name has not been released, and worked to get him to advanced medical care, but he died before he could be taken by helicopter to a hospital, according to the release.

The officers who fired were all from City of Waukesha police and have between one and five years of service on the department. Their names have not been released and they have been placed on paid administrative leave, per policy, according to Jack’s statement.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice’s Division of Criminal Investigation is handling the investigation, in accordance with a state law that requires an outside agency to probe fatal officer-involved shootings.

Jack offered strong support for his officers in the news release, saying the man had “forced officers to fire at the suspect to prevent further imminent danger to themselves and the community.”

The chief added: “Based on the preliminary information gathered at this point, I believe that the officers acted within departmental policy and statutory authority.”