Posted on 08/17/2016 4:19:06 PM PDT by Inspectorette
KELSO Authorities say a Kelso (WA) patrolman shot and killed a man Wednesday morning who attacked a gas station clerk, a customer, and the officer himself with a walking stick.
Cowlitz County Sheriff Mark Nelson told a news conference later in the morning that the suspect, a 27-year-old man described as a transient, was reported to have shoplifted from a gas station food mart in West Kelso.
The officer, identified as John Johnston, responded about 8 a.m. to take a report. As the officer and one of the clerks were reviewing surveillance footage in an office, the man returned to the store and began striking a clerk and a customer with the stick, according to the news release.
Nelson said the officer tried to intervene but was struck in the head. He was also injured in the arm and leg, police said. He then shot the suspect, who has not been identified.
Johnston is a 22-year member of the Kelso police department. Johnston, the clerk and the customer were taken to a hospital by ambulance, and all have been treated and released.
The sheriff said the suspect had been contacted by law enforcement several times in the past week, including an arrest last weekend.
Kelso is in Washington's Cowlitz County, east of Longview.
The Longview Daily News reported the incident occurred at the Flying K gas station, at First Avenue and West Main at the foot of the Allen Street Bridge.
The paper, citing Kelso Police Chief Andrew Hamilton, said it was unclear how many shots had been fired.
Longview police and the Cowlitz County Sheriff's Office are investigating, the standard practice for other agencies to investigate officer-involved shootings, the paper said. The report will be updated as details emerge.
Kelso getting BLM activity??? You’re kidding, right?
Tacoma is north of Kelso, not south. I live in Longview.
How's the atmosphere in Longview?
Not Kelso, but Portland. BLM had a protest there last weekend.
#transientlivesmatter
My Mom asked me if they still had The Nutty Narrows Bridge there.
Haven’t been there in years.
Oh, not true. They have lots of them, all over Longview!
What do you mean, ‘atmosphere’?
Rock...paper, scissors...
Links doesn’t go to the story.
Are residents concerned that there might be trouble coming from BLM? This is the type of incident that they love to make an issue of.
Don’t know why - this was directly from The Oregonian website, “Oregonlive.com”.
Try this - sorry, I’m not up on HTML.
Sorry.
Meant I haven’t been there in years.
Is Capn Yobis still there?
Most of sw wash reads oregonian.
That link works, thanks. I wanted to see what the deceased’s relationship was to BLM but there is no description or name so a bit of a dead end, so to speak.
“#transientlivesmatter”
#BumLivesMatter
The deceased is African American. He may not have a connection to BLM, but when has that ever stopped them from accusations of racism.
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