Update: Police, shoot kill man using child as shield during domestic dispute in Redwood City
REDWOOD CITY (CBS SF) – An apparent domestic dispute led to a fatal police shooting in Redwood City Tuesday in which officers killed a man trying to use three children as a shield and nearby bystanders running for cover amid a fusillade of shots.
Redwood City police said the incident began at approximately 3:19 p.m. with a 911 call from a cellular phone to Redwood City police dispatch. A police spokesperson said Tuesday night that no one spoke with the dispatcher, but the dispatcher could hear what sounded like a child screaming in the background just before the phone disconnected.
The dispatcher called back the number, but the call went to voicemail. A cellular tower confirmed for police that the phone was in the area of the 1500 block of El Camino Real.
When officers arrived there, they discovered a domestic violence incident involving a man, a woman and three children, police said. After officers' arrival, the police spokesperson said the man armed himself with a handgun and began attempting to use the children as a shield.
Police attempted to negotiate with him. But, before communication could be established, the officers perceived the man was attempting to shoot the woman and/or the children. That is when officers responded immediately "with lethal force and the male was incapacitated".
Officers removed the loaded handgun from the suspect while rendering medical aid and CPR while paramedics were on the way to the scene. The suspect was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The woman sustained injuries not related to the shooting and was also transported to a local hospital for treatment. The children were unharmed.
It is unclear what the relationship was between the suspect and the woman and children.
The officers involved have been placed on paid administrative leave. The San Mateo County District Attorney's Office has assumed full responsibility of the investigation.
An account on Facebook called "Redwood City Residents Say: 'What?'" posted a video that purportedly shows the shooting scene and a number of shots are heard.
Video showed a sedan with its doors open and a large amount of blood next to it. The scene was between an appliance shop and a construction site.
Police closed El Camino Real between Vera Avenue and Roosevelt Avenue as the situation unfolded and the investigation was taking place.
Witness Kevin Jacoubowsky was ducking for cover in front of a red jeep on El Camino Real right across the street from the crime scene
"It was a scarier moment of my life, my heart was racing, I thought okay, I just want to stick behind this jeep, stay out of sight," he said. "Crazy, I've never seen anything like it. Just watching people get pulled out of their cars and told to run."
Cell phone video from Kevin's father Mike Jacoubowsky showed people running out of a blue car as more shots rang out.
"Stuff got really real, really fast," said Jacoubowsky. "And then we heard probably about eight shots."
Jacoubowsky is an assistant manager at nearby Chain Reaction Bicycles on El Camino Real near Roosevelt Avenue. His family has run the business for more than 30 years.
"I've never had any real problems myself in Redwood City, so I mean there's not much that goes on here," he said. "We'll watch a traffic accident every now and then."
