By Police1 Staff
SAND SPRINGS, Okla. — Body cam footage of the fatal shooting of a mentally ill man armed with a pistol has been released.
Tulsa World reports the April 11 incident began when police received a call from a neighbor that 66-year-old Donald W. Allen was firing a weapon into the air in his backyard.
When police arrived, the reported paranoid schizophrenic told officers he would kill them if they didn’t leave his property.
As officers retreated in order to call in a SWAT team, Allen returned to his house.
Officers then made phone contact with the suspect’s wife, who informed them Allen had recently purchased a pistol and multiple rifles.
As officers again approached the home, Allen exited from the back of the house armed with a .22-caliber pistol and approached 25-year-old Officer Brian Barnett.
Allen was shot multiple times after ignoring commands to drop his weapon. Attempts were made to revive the suspect at the scene, but were unsuccessful.
Allen reportedly had multiple prior run-ins with the law and had weapons confiscated from him over the years.
“We had multiple opportunities for [Allen] to comply in putting down the weapon,” Deputy Chief Mike Carter told Tulsa World. "[Barnett] went from that de-escalation phase to the terror of someone trying to kill you.”
Police are currently investigating the incident. Both Barnett and another officer have been placed on leave, per policy.