By Mara H. Gottfried
Pioneer Press
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Seconds after a St. Paul police officer exited his squad car, a man ducked behind a car before shooting at the officer and the officer fired back, videos released by the police department Tuesday show.
Officer Michael Tschida was shot and wounded in his leg. The officer shot Brandon Daleshaun Keys, 24, in the head and he died at the hospital early Friday.
A 911 transcript, along with Tschida’s body-worn and squad dash cameras, show a woman’s desperate call for help and the intensity of the situation on a busy street in the city’s Merriam Park neighborhood.
The woman called 911 Thursday afternoon and reported the father of her child was chasing her, that she had a current order for protection against him, and that he had a gun.
“He just hit my car,” the woman reported, saying they were in separate vehicles. “… Oh my God. Please, I need help. … I’m trying to get away from him.”
She reported he “just busted my windshield” and a male could be heard saying, “Open the door,” the 911 transcript shows.
“I’m not calling the police,” the woman said and the man replied, “I just saw you.”
“Brandon, I’m not,” the transcript continued.
She reported she was in a silver van and he was in a blue Impala, and that the man was ramming her vehicle. “He’s gonna kill me,” she said.
“God no, Brandon,” the woman could be heard saying on the call. “… No. You’re not going to jail. … Brandon, please go, leave.”
The woman reported that police arrived and then she screamed, “No,” repeatedly and “Tell them stop. … Don’t shoot him,” before she asked for an ambulance to respond.
Video shows officer limping, man on ground
The videos show Tschida exited his squad at Cretin and Marshall avenues at 2:17 p.m. Thursday. He yelled to a man, “Get on the ground, on the ground!” That’s when the shooting happened.
“Shots fired, shots fired!” Tschida relayed on his police radio. “… I’m hit!”
A dispatcher called a “Signal 13,” the highest priority in St. Paul of an officer needing help.
A woman ran from a silver van and to the man, and Tschida repeatedly shouted for her to move. “Get the (expletive) out of the way, so I can get him help!” Tschida yelled as she cried.
The officer could be seen on video limping toward the pair, removing a handgun that was under the man’s ankle and moving it away.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which is investigating, has said they recovered a handgun at the scene.
Tschida was treated and released from the hospital Thursday. He was placed on administrative leave, which is standard in such cases.
Leaders respond
Mayor Melvin Carter said Tuesday that St. Paul had “experienced, in one moment, two of the most horrific experiences that a community can endure.”
“Both of those together are a challenging incident that leaves our city with complex layers of grief to unpack and to process,” Carter said. “We are fortunate and grateful that in this instance the injuries to Officer Tschida were non-life threatening. Our prayers, of course continue to be with him and with his family as he recovers. … We also know that we lost a community member at the same time. … We also know that that reality is traumatizing.”
Carter said, in the interest of transparency, he’s committed to releasing body-camera footage after the BCA collects preliminary witness statements and the family of the deceased is able to view it. They hope the video provides “at least some clarity around some of the facts that we know very early on,” said Police Chief Axel Henry.
Mark Ross, St. Paul Police Federation president, said the video shows Tschida responded “heroically” after he was shot and had no place to take cover.
“This, once again, illustrates the grave danger posed to law enforcement, communities, and the decisions that must be made, in a split second, to preserve life,” said Brian Peters, Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association executive director, in a Tuesday statement. “This incident could have ended differently: the victim of domestic abuse could have died and/or the law enforcement officers or other innocent victims could have died. Enough is enough. It’s time for our leaders to stand together to denounce violent escalation on police.”
Click the photo below to watch the videos.
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