Post by crudo on Nov 7, 2005 14:00:28 GMT -5
Neighbors say man shot by police was 'nice guy'
He's listed as stable; officer on paid leave pending investigation
By BLAIR CRADDOCK
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: November 7, 2005, 04:19:14 AM PST
The Modesto Police Department on Sunday released the name of a man who suffered life-threatening injuries after an officer shot him Saturday, and the name of the officer.
The man who was shot was Richard Hamilton, of Modesto, Police Chief Roy Wasden said. He did not have Hamilton's age available, but said he was in his 40s.
Officer Mike Hammond, who has been with the Modesto Police Department about four years, fired his gun in the incident Saturday morning on Muscat Way, said Officer Michael Amarillas, a spokesman for the Police Department.
Hamilton underwent surgery for injuries suffered in the shooting, Amarillas said. He was in stable condition Sunday at Doctors Medical Center, the hospital said.
Amarillas said Hamilton has not been charged with a crime, and detectives have not been able to speak with him.
The Police Department reported Hammond fired his gun after Hamilton charged at officers with a knife. Officers had gone to the 800 block of Muscat Way about 6:45 a.m., after callers complained a man was in the street, holding a knife.
The officers tried unsuccessfully to use an unspecified type of nonlethal force and backed up all the way to the street before Hammond fired, the Police Department said in a statement.
On Muscat Way, a short street of single-family houses north of Standiford Avenue, no one answered the door at the house where neighbors said Hamilton lived.
A man at a nearby house, who would not give his name because he "would just as soon not be bugged by the cops," said on Saturday before dawn he saw Hamilton in the street, shouting, holding what looked like a large kitchen knife.
Normally, he said, Hamilton was a quiet person who grew flowers in his yard.
"How long do you wait? Do you stand there and let somebody stab you?" he said of the shooting. "Still, it was terrible, because he's a nice guy. … I don't know if it was justified or not. But it was scary."
The Police Department said Hammond is on paid leave, pending an investigation, as is standard procedure when an officer is involved in a shooting.
Bee staff writer Blair Craddock can be reached at 578-2394 or bcraddock@modbee.com.
He's listed as stable; officer on paid leave pending investigation
By BLAIR CRADDOCK
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: November 7, 2005, 04:19:14 AM PST
The Modesto Police Department on Sunday released the name of a man who suffered life-threatening injuries after an officer shot him Saturday, and the name of the officer.
The man who was shot was Richard Hamilton, of Modesto, Police Chief Roy Wasden said. He did not have Hamilton's age available, but said he was in his 40s.
Officer Mike Hammond, who has been with the Modesto Police Department about four years, fired his gun in the incident Saturday morning on Muscat Way, said Officer Michael Amarillas, a spokesman for the Police Department.
Hamilton underwent surgery for injuries suffered in the shooting, Amarillas said. He was in stable condition Sunday at Doctors Medical Center, the hospital said.
Amarillas said Hamilton has not been charged with a crime, and detectives have not been able to speak with him.
The Police Department reported Hammond fired his gun after Hamilton charged at officers with a knife. Officers had gone to the 800 block of Muscat Way about 6:45 a.m., after callers complained a man was in the street, holding a knife.
The officers tried unsuccessfully to use an unspecified type of nonlethal force and backed up all the way to the street before Hammond fired, the Police Department said in a statement.
On Muscat Way, a short street of single-family houses north of Standiford Avenue, no one answered the door at the house where neighbors said Hamilton lived.
A man at a nearby house, who would not give his name because he "would just as soon not be bugged by the cops," said on Saturday before dawn he saw Hamilton in the street, shouting, holding what looked like a large kitchen knife.
Normally, he said, Hamilton was a quiet person who grew flowers in his yard.
"How long do you wait? Do you stand there and let somebody stab you?" he said of the shooting. "Still, it was terrible, because he's a nice guy. … I don't know if it was justified or not. But it was scary."
The Police Department said Hammond is on paid leave, pending an investigation, as is standard procedure when an officer is involved in a shooting.
Bee staff writer Blair Craddock can be reached at 578-2394 or bcraddock@modbee.com.
