UTAH

One person in critical condition after officer-involved shooting

KEARNS — Police responded to an officer-involved shooting near 4450 W. 5700 S. in Kearns that sent one person to the hospital.

Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera updated reporters briefly Wednesday afternoon to say one person was in critical condition, and the public is not in danger.

This started at the Fiesta Ole restaurant on 5400 South, after a man with a knife reportedly robbed it.  Police say the description of the suspect seemed familiar.

Rivera says, “Our officers and detectives immediately went to that scene and felt like they could identify a possible suspect.”

That man was tracked to a home on 5700 South, and some sort of confrontation happened.

She says, “A weapon was displayed.  I do know that, and shots were fired.”

People who happened to be close when shots rang out are describing what they saw and heard.  One man, Rick, was in his truck right before the shooting.

“Four cop cars came whizzing down the street.  They came up to the home, pulled sideways facing northbound and got out of their cars.  Then I heard a ‘Pop, pop, pop!” he says.

Police activity meant several roads in the area, which is about one mile east of Kearns High School in a residential area, were impacted with detoured traffic as officers responded.

According to Salt Lake County’s Officer Involved Critical Incident Protocol, revised earlier this year, an officer-involved critical incident can be any of the following events:

• The use by an officer of a dangerous weapon that leads to someone’s injury
• The fatal injury of anyone (except the officer) because of the use of an officer’s vehicle
• An in-custody death, if it was not the result of natural causes, disease, etc.
• The fatal injury to someone as the result of an officer trying to prevent their escape, arrest or restrain them