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SARATOGA SPRINGS — An armed man who police say was trying to get away from them by entering a random home was shot and killed by officers on the front porch of the residence Monday night.
The 50-year-old man with a Salt Lake City driver's license, whose name has not yet been released, was shot in the Dalmore Meadows subdivision of Saratoga Springs, according to police. Three officers with the Saratoga Springs Police Department have been placed on standard administrative leave pending the outcome of the officer-involved shooting investigation.
The fatal confrontation began about 11 p.m. Monday in Lehi near 1000 E. Main. Officers pulled over a vehicle for an unknown violation. But shortly after stopping, the car drove off again, according to Saratoga Springs Police Chief Andrew Burton.
A chase was initiated and went into American Fork, back to Lehi and then into Saratoga Springs. As the fleeing vehicle was about to enter Saratoga Springs on Pioneer Crossing, a Utah County sheriff's deputy was able to successfully deflate both passenger-side tires using spikes, the chief said. The car continued moving, however.
At Redwood Road, the Lehi officers called off their chase, but the vehicle was spotted a short time later by Saratoga Springs officers who had been monitoring the pursuit. Officers attempted to confront the driver when he turned into a parking lot. It is believed the driver then tried to ram either a patrol car or an officer with his vehicle, Burton said.
The man drove out of the parking lot and across Redwood Road to the subdivision, where he turned into a cul-de-sac. Realizing that he had driven into a dead end, Burton said the man got out of his car and ran. At that point, officers could clearly see he was holding a gun, the chief said.
"He ran up on the porch of a house and started banging on the door, loud enough that the homeowners were awakened," Burton said.
Police say the man had no association with the home he was trying to enter. Three officers converged on him, giving multiple commands to stop and drop his gun, he said.
"That was refused," the chief said.
After the man failed to follow the officers' orders, he was shot, Burton said. When he fell to the ground, the gun was still in his hand, he said.
What specifically prompted the officers to shoot — whether it was because the man threatened the officers directly or whether officers were afraid he would break into the house — will be part of the investigation by the officer-involved critical incident protocol team led by the Orem Police Department.
"There's no question that the individual was in possession of a firearm, was facing the officers, was refusing their commands to drop the firearm. Beyond that, I don't know," Burton said.
But the chief also noted there was a family inside the home with children.
"Had he gained entry, we may have seen something much worse than we had. He's an armed individual, frantic. He probably would have taken (the family) hostage. It's a family with children. And it would have been a very ugly situation," he said. "I think it's important to remember that the job officers do is to protect the public. And in this case, I think it was accomplished.
"I think we would have possibly had a very dire situation had he gained entry."
Burton said police officers are trained to make split-second decisions that could mean the difference between life and death.
"It's a tough decision. It's not a decision that we want to face. This is the last resort. This is the last thing that we want to do. But sometimes it's required. And that's what is required of us is to make those tough choices when the time comes," he said.
Burton said the investigation will include reviewing body camera video, dashboard camera video, and video from doorbell cameras of residents. The house where the shooting took place had both doorbell cameras and a separate camera on the front porch, he said.
