The Grand Junction Police Department is releasing the following information on behalf of the 21st Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT).
Shortly after 10:00am on August 29, 2020, the Grand Junction Regional Communication Center received a call about a trespass in progress taking place in the 1200 Block of M ¾ Road in Loma. The reporting party stated that her neighbor was on her property and was carrying a gun. Deputies with the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office responded to the area, as well as officers with the Fruita Police Department who responded to assist, and located the male suspect. The suspect was armed with a firearm and was not compliant with directions from law enforcement. Ultimately, the suspect was shot by law enforcement. A previous release regarding this incident can be viewed here.
All officer-involved shootings in Mesa County are investigated by the 21st Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team, which is comprised of representatives of the Grand Junction Police Department, Mesa County Sheriff’s Office, Fruita Police Department, Palisade Police Department, Colorado State Patrol, Colorado Department of Corrections, 21st Judicial District Attorney’s Office, and Colorado Bureau of Investigation. CIRT is activated when a law enforcement agency is involved in a critical incident to ensure an independent investigation. Because Mesa County Sheriff’s Office and Fruita Police Department personnel were involved in this incident, the Grand Junction Police Department led this investigation on behalf of CIRT.
The CIRT investigation was completed and turned over to the Mesa County District Attorney’s Office. District Attorney Dan Rubinstein has completed his review of the investigation, and his findings can be reviewed here. All involved law enforcement officers have returned to work.
We appreciate the trust and patience of the public, while we ensure a thorough investigation into incidents like this one is completed.