SPOKANE, Wash. — For the first time, there is a look into a deadly officer involved shooting that played out in Hillyard last fall. Officers responded to a domestic violence call where a man was shooting a gun inside a home.
When officers arrived, the suspect had left the area. He later returned, and opened fire on police, who returned fire and killed him. Now, body camera footage shows how it all played out.
The moment the suspect was shot is not shown, but viewers should be warned: some of the footage may be disturbing.
Spokane Police released that footage Wednesday. Last Spring, the officers were found justified in fatally shooting the suspect. The video shows just how quickly things can change for officers on scene.
This is a body camera worn camera from one of those cops on East Rowan in Hillyard. The first portion of the video doesn't have any sound and the suspect from the domestic violence can be seen show back up at the scene.
He ignores commands from officers, and then fires at them.
Out of nowhere, the suspect shoots at the officers with a gun in his pocket. The officers return fire and he keeps walking, ignoring commands to stop. Fearing for their safety, and people in nearby homes, the officers continued to shoot. The graphic parts of the video were censored by Spokane Police, using a black box over the video. Audio picks back up and officers approach to disarm the suspect. Once the scene is secure, they begin first aid, encouraging the suspect to stay alive.
He would later die at the hospital, though.
That suspect was identified as James Danforth, an eight-time convicted felon.
A woman he was staying with in a nearby home said Danforth was acting erratic, and shooting a gun off in the home. When police originally arrived, Danforth had already taken off.
Officers stayed on scene to file some reports in their patrol cars...and an hour and a half later, that's when this happened.
Police have said it serves as an example of how a scene can change in an instant and why domestic violence calls are some of the most dangerous scenes they respond to.
Again, those officers were ruled justified in their use of force.
Neither were injured in all of that.
The suspect was hit three times and an autopsy showed he had meth in his system at the time.