FRANKFORT, KY (WLEX) - Frankfort police say a preliminary investigation indicates the fatal shooting of a suspect last month was justified.
Police say a woman called 911 around 9:15 p.m. on Dec. 30, saying an
armed man had her trapped inside of a home along Winding Way Drive. She
told them Gary Meadows pointed a gun at her and threatened to shoot
anybody who came into the house. Frankfort police set up a perimeter and
sent in the tactical response unit, along with a negotiator.
Officers made contact with the woman by phone, and she told them she
had locked herself in another part of the house, away from Meadows.
Police tried to get Meadows to put down the gun and come out of the house for several hours.
Police say at some point, Meadows suddenly came outside brandishing a
handgun. Officers commanded him to drop the gun. According to police,
officers opened fire when Meadows pointed the gun at them.
Police say the two officers involved were Todd Smither, 31, and Bill
Graves 30, both members of the tactical response unit. Smither joined
Frankfort P.D. in 2005. Graves came on in 2011, but had previous law
enforcement experience, according to police department officials.
Frankfort police released a statement on the preliminary investigation Tuesday.
"Information gathered by Frankfort Police Department detectives,
conducting the internal administrative investigation, indicates that in
review of the totality of the circumstances, reasonable force was used
in this incident, and furthermore, the actions of the involved officers
were within guidelines and in compliance with Frankfort Police
Department policies and procedures."
This internal administrative investigation by the Frankfort Police Department continues.
Kentucky State Police are also investigating. When concluded, the
results of this investigation will be forwarded to the office of the
Franklin County Commonwealth's Attorney Larry Cleveland.
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