Officer Ryan Donald shot two unarmed black men in their twenties after they attempted to steal beer. The two men were hospitalized in critical condition.
An Olympia police officer shot two unarmed black men suspected of shoplifting beer early Thursday morning.
The two men, 24 and 21-year-old stepbrothers, were taken to the hospital in critical condition, police said.
Officer Ryan Donald responded to calls from a store at around 1 a.m. on Thursday reporting two men who attempted to steal beer and then threw items at store employees before fleeing.
Donald made contact with the suspects at 1:14 a.m. and reported shooting them at 1:16 a.m., Police Chief Ronnie Roberts said at a news briefing on Thursday.
Donald shot one of the suspects during a confrontation at the back of the patrol vehicle. The two suspects fled into the woods where Donald shot the second suspect multiple times in the torso during a second confrontation. He rendered aid and called for medics.
Roberts did not provide details on the nature of both confrontations but said that Donald "felt threatened and discharged his firearm."
According to Roberts, Donald said over the radio that he was assaulted by one of the suspects with a skateboard.
Both suspects were unarmed when they were shot, Roberts confirmed. He said he did not believe the shooting was racially motivated.
The two suspects were taken to the hospital in critical condition. One of them was said to be in stable condition while the other continues to remain in critical condition, King5 News reported.
Donald, who has been an officer for three years, was put on administrative leave pending an investigation. The Thurston County Critical Incident Team, comprised of detectives from five local agencies, is investigating the shooting.
Roberts said there would also be an internal investigation.
from BuzzFeed - USNews http://ift.tt/1F0keuv
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