A shooting incident involving an officer of the Clearlake Police Department is currently under investigation by several agencies. The investigation includes Clearlake police administration, Lake County District Attorney”s Office as well as the Department of Justice.
Officers were dispatched around 9:33 p.m. June 30 for a disturbance at York”s Trailer Park on Old Highway 53. Dispatch advised that the disturbance involved a fight in which a female was being assaulted with possible weapons involved. Upon officers” arrival, they were reportedly confronted by a white male adult with a shotgun.
According to Clearlake Police Chief Allan McClain, one of the officers fired his weapon, which resulted in the death of the suspect. The suspect was pronounced dead on the scene.
McClain reported on Wednesday that a multi-agency investigation is currently being conducted. The Lake County District Attorney”s Office is conducting the criminal investigation to determine if there was any wrongdoing by the officer. Clearlake Police Department administration is conducting a review to make sure policy was followed and the Department of Justice is doing the crime scene investigation.
Interviews with residents of the park and witnesses at the scene were conducted on Tuesday and are continuing, according to McClain.
“At this point it looks like what the officer did was according to policy and law but we don”t want to make any judgment until we get the report from the DA”s office,” McClain stated.
The officers involved in the incident are currently on paid administrative leave, which is according to department policy. It is also policy for officers involved in such an incident to undergo psychological evaluation.
“In any critical incident, we send them to a counselor so they can just talk and make sure everything is good. Then we get them cleared and back out on the streets,” McClain explained.
“There is range of emotions they go through. It”s really tough,” McClain said, fighting his own emotions. “It”s always tough on everybody and my heart goes out to the family as well.”
Margarita Mora reported from the scene that her 23-year-old nephew was unintentionally struck by a bullet during the incident. The man was upright and conscious when he was transported from the scene by Lake County Fire District personnel.
Further information regarding the incident is not releasable at this time.
Contact Denise Rockenstein at drockenstein@clearlakeobserver.com.
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