DENVER (KDVR) — The Denver Police Department serves all of Denver, especially in places it calls “hot spots,” like 20th and Larimer streets on a busy Saturday night.
“You don’t get to pick and choose where that deadly threat ends up presenting itself,” tactical expert James Allbee said.
The FOX31 Data Desk found the block at Larimer and 20th has the second-highest concentration of violent crime in Lower Downtown, after Union Station.
Like other “hot spots,” Allbee said the area can get violent.
“Typically, there’s always going to be fights, there’s always going to be some type of encounter — good, bad or indifferent,” Allbee said.
3 officers fired 7 rounds in the street
Early Sunday morning after 1:30 a.m., things came to a head outside the Larimer Beer Hall. Denver police have chosen not to release body camera video yet, providing just a few screen grabs that they say show suspect Jordan Waddy pointed a gun at them.
It was closing time and there was a crowd. Three officers fired a total of seven rounds at Waddy in the street.
Allbee said police found themselves in a dilemma: let a suspect, who has presented a weapon and a danger to others, get further away or risk that suspect causing harm to people in the crowd.
“By delaying any type of contact with an individual who has been violent and potentially going to get more violent, they’ve got to intervene and that’s what they did. They’re peacekeepers,” Allbee said.
The decision of officers in the moment needs to manifest in a matter of seconds.
“Does he have the opportunity to end up going there and hurting more individuals? Do we end up giving the individual more space because we know he’s got a gun? And now we’ve got a thousand people around that now are going to end up taking shots from this guy?” Allbee said.
Lawyer claims officers violated law in shooting
On the subject of the shooting, there is clear-cut language coming from attorney Crist Whitney, who is representing two of the six bystanders wounded in the shooting.
Officers violated state law, according to Whitney, when they shot in the direction of the crowd in pursuit of their suspect.
Whitney said Colorado law allows officers to use deadly force when it’s reasonable and when there’s no risk of injury to others.
The language Whitney used to describe what happened on Saturday morning is bold and straight to the point, especially when it comes to the experience of the victims.
“Well, we would say it’s a miracle that they’re still alive,” Whitney said. “They were in a mass shooting and they survived it, and we would say it’s a million-dollar wound.”
Whitney also cited Denver Police policy, which he said prohibits officers from firing a weapon if someone is not being sought by officers and might be injured.
Whitney is requesting body camera video of the shooting as well as the disciplinary and training records of the officers involved
