Police1 Staff Report
(MARICOPA COUNTY, Ariz.) -- A drunk driving stop escalated from the routine to a high-speed chase, then a police standoff and ended with the suspect killed by SWAT team members.
Curtis Dean Davis was shot and killed while waving a gun at police and trying to flee the West Valley residence that he used to keep the Maricopa County Sheriff’s department at bay for nearly five hours, authorities said.
At about 9 p.m. on Nov. 22 police stopped Davis for speeding near El Mirage and Lower Buckeye roads, according to the Arizona Republic.
The suspect refused to cooperate with deputies’ attempts to conduct a sobriety check and drove off, nearly dragging one of the deputies with him, Bill Knight, a detective and public information officer with the sheriff’s office told the newspaper.
Davis lost control of the car during the chase and crashed into store signs at a strip mall. The suspect then fled on foot to an unoccupied residence on West Dana Lane, police said.
“We did a check on him, and he had an extensive criminal history, mostly violent in nature,” Knight told the Republic, this included outstanding warrants involving attempted murder and a parole violation.
“In his vehicle, we found a rifle, a handgun and a holster that did not fit the gun we found, so it was possible he had a weapon with him. We were not dealing with a nice guy.”
Deputies tried to coax Davis out of the house, but “he was not very receptive to this type of information, and on several different communications, he made the statement that he was in possession of a gun and would come out shooting,” Knight told the newspaper.
Davis was eventually flushed out of the house by tear gas, but instead of giving up he attempted to flee while pointing his gun at police.
He was shot and killed at the scene.