Oklahoma Officer-Involved Shootings Have Been Fatal 17 Times So Far This Year

The Tulsa World compiled a list of the people who were killed, information about the shootings and whether the shootings have been ruled justified.

Jonathan LeRoy: Justified

LeRoy’s father called authorities Jan. 6 to say he had kicked his 39-year-old son out of the house for attacking his wife. When Pottawatomie County Deputy James S. Caskey encountered him, LeRoy advanced on him with a baseball bat and refused commands. Caskey fired one round that killed LeRoy, the Shawnee News-Star reported.

Geraldine Townsend: Justified

While Bartlesville police were serving a search warrant Jan. 17, Geraldine Townsend, 72, fired “some type of high-powered pellet handgun” at officers. An officer who has not been identified returned fire, striking Townsend in the upper body.

Jonathan Atchley: Justified

Atchley, 37, became violent after a traffic stop on Jan. 21, attacking Sallisaw Police Officer Blaine Griffey even after a baton and pepper spray were used to subdue him. Atchley was then shot several times by Griffey, who stated that he was physically exhausted and felt like he was losing consciousness as a result of the prolonged struggle.

Police chased Knight, 40, on Jan. 22 after he fled from a traffic stop in north Tulsa. He eventually got out of his vehicle with a shotgun pointed at his head. A standoff with police lasted about an hour before he shot himself while trying to kick in the back door of a house, and he was shot by Tulsa Police Officers Robert Marcum and Ben Brandt when he refused commands to drop the shotgun.

Ricky Rusche: Status unknown

Pottawatomie County sheriff’s deputies went with U.S. marshals to find the 40-year-old prison escapee Jan. 30. Authorities located Rusche at a home near Pink, and a confrontation ensued. After a firefight, officers found Rusche dead.

William Young: Justified

Young, 56, was killed Feb. 2 after he opened fire on an Oklahoma City police officer who was responding to a “trouble unknown” call. After Young’s death, officers found the body of Young’s 51-year-old wife, Jennifer Young, in a van. The woman’s 29-year-old daughter also had been shot. Investigators said they believe that William Young shot both women.

Paul Strickland: Justified

Residents of a Catoosa mobile home park reported a man walking around firing a weapon on Feb. 17. When deputies arrived, Strickland, 55, fired from inside a trailer, starting a standoff that lasted hours before he stepped out with a semiautomatic rifle. Wagoner County Sheriff’s Office Lt. Kyle Johnson and Deputy James Burk fatally shot him through the open door.

Haydon Taylor: Justified

The 26-year-old transient man was walking the halls of an Oklahoma City hotel Feb. 25 when police confronted him and he pulled a knife. Taylor was shot when he refused commands and advanced toward Officer Grant Wheeler, police said.

After a woman called Mannford police about a suspicious man on March 21, officers made contact with Lunn, 47. While removing his clothing, Lunn walked about 100 yards before pulling a large knife from his pants and turning toward the officers. After refusing commands to drop the knife, Lunn moved toward the officers, who then fired at him. The OSBI is helping investigate.

When Owasso police responded to a welfare check 911 call on March 21, Preciado, 39, came out of the residence with an AK-47 rifle. Police said he refused to respond to commands and was advancing on the retreating officers when they shot him.

William John Dominguez: Justified

On March 28, Stillwater police responded to call from a man who reported that he was armed and suicidal. After officers encountered Dominguez, 31, he brandished a knife and pistol. Investigators said Dominguez was shot after he refused to put down the gun and knife.

On April 9, law enforcement officers pursued a stolen vehicle to a rural residence between Oaks and Twin Oaks in Delaware County. Rogers, 34, broke into a mobile home and took its disabled resident hostage. He was fatally shot in a hostage standoff situation.

A Guthrie police officer was responding to an “erratic driver” call on March 31 when he came across an altercation between a man and a woman. Birt, 27, armed with a machete, approached an officer when law enforcement arrived at the scene. Police opened fire.

Okmulgee police responded to a disturbance call at the Budget Inn on April 4. Inside one of the rooms, officers found Carswell, who reportedly was threatening suicide and had a knife to his throat. When Carswell, 27, advanced on officers after refusing commands to drop the weapon, they shot him.

Tishomingo police officers and Johnston County sheriff’s deputies were called to a report of family violence at a residence on April 17. After law enforcement arrived, Monjay, 39, rammed his vehicle into a Tishomingo patrol car, and two Tishomingo officers and one sheriff’s deputy fired at him.

On May 6, Prague police officers were involved in a pursuit with a suspect who was accused of attacking a woman. The vehicle was disabled in Seminole County when an Oklahoma Highway Patrol vehicle performed a tactical maneuver to end the pursuit. At that point, the man reportedly pointed what was believed to be a rifle and was shot by officers.