Police officer kills gunman during exchange of fire following Oakley domestic dispute
OAKLEY -- Police in Oakley shot and killed a man during an exchange of gunfire following a standoff with officers early Friday morning, authorities said.
The shooting happened several hours after the initial call to police about a domestic dispute on the 1800 block of Teresa Lane in a neighborhood between Main Street and Village Parkway. The caller reported her boyfriend had a gun and had been driving around with her in the car, not letting her leave. She also told police her boyfriend said he was going to kill her and himself.
After arriving at the residence, the woman ran away and called police. When officers arrived, they attempted to contact the 58-year-old suspect but he did not respond. According to a press release from the city, officers used a drone to see inside the home and determined the man had a gun.
Attempts by police to communicate with the man were unsuccessful and he fired several shots inside the home. At about 1:18 a.m., the suspect fired several rounds at Oakley police officers and one officer returned fire, hitting the suspect, according to the press statement.
Medics responded but the unidentified gunman died at the scene.
"Our officers are trained to deescalate situations at every opportunity when that is a viable option," said Oakley Police Chief Paul Beard in a prepared statement. "Our officers attempted to deescalate this tragic situation last night, but the suspect would not allow for our attempts to take hold. When officers are presented with such grave and dangerous situations, and when no other options work or are available, they must sometimes fall back on other critical training they receive on a regular basis. This is the training they fell back on last night to ensure there was no loss of lives of innocent victims or the officers themselves."
Aside from the police investigation, the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office responded and is conducting its own investigation.
The City of Oakley said more information would be provided at a later time.