man killed in officer involved shooting is a LVMPD recruit

Cheech · 02-13-07, 06:32 AM

http://www.lasvegasnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=6069700
Man Killed in OIS Revealed as Police Recruit

The man who was fatally shot by police officers on Friday night has been identified as 29-year-old police recruit Ivan Alonzo. As with any officer involved shooting, a coroner's inquest will be scheduled.

Eyewitness News learned more Monday about that recruit and how he made it into the academy. Police officials say it's a situation they've never experienced and didn't see coming.

The police recruit who investigators say opened fire at two Metro officers off the Las Vegas Strip near Mandalay Bay on Friday night wanted out.

Deputy Chief Jim Owens said, "Recruit Alonza had called his sergeant earlier in the day and left a message that he wanted to resign from the academy."

Police say some time after that phone call, Alonzo began throwing out Molotov cocktails into the desert and then at two police officers that arrived on the scene. Police say he then took out two guns and started firing. One officer shot back hitting Alonzo several times.

The suspect later died, but police say they had no reason to believe this would happen with one of their own recruits.

Owens continued, "Of those that make it to background investigation, we lose 70-percent of our applicants. It's a very tough background to get through to make sure we're hiring people that are suitable to be police officers.

Deputy Chief Owens says recruits go through vigorous testing, including a polygraph, a physical test and even an extensive psychological examination. "He met the standards in every area."

The recruit had just finished the pre-academy and was scheduled to start the main 22-week academy the following day.

Metro maintains that despite their need for police officers, standards have not changed.

"We are much more concerned with quality over quantity," Deputy Chief Owens explained.

Metro would not say why the recruit decided to resign. Sheriff Gillespie maintains that Officers Jacenek and Fairweather acted properly.

Email your comments to Reporter Melissa Duran.

(Feb. 11) -- Metro is investigating its second officer-involved shooting of the year. The armed man shot by police actually worked for metro as a recruit. He died at UMC Saturday morning.

This incident started just before 9 p.m. Friday night. Police say the man had been throwing Molotov cocktails and setting fires near the south end of the Strip. When police arrived, officers found themselves in a fierce gun battle with one of their own.

"The suspect that fired upon us is actually a recruit in one of our academies. He's a Metro employee. He was indiscriminately out here shooting rounds into the air," said Clark County Sheriff Doug Gillespie.

An ambulance crew in the area rushed to the fires but backed off when they saw the man was armed.

"I had seen him running, shooting in the air, and then I saw him go back over there. It was just like bam, bam. Like five in a row. People are lucky they didn't get hit," said Paris Silva, an eyewitness.

"The facts will come out, that's what we have to wait to see here," said Sheriff Gillespie.

Police say all signs at this point indicate the officers were justified in firing away. Their lives were on the line. One officer received a scrape to his leg in the gun battle.

Police say the suspect had two handguns.

**E-man** · 02-13-07, 09:18 AM

Somebody Fu#$ed up and somewhere at the end of this SOMEONE is going to get in trouble...
HOW? this kid should not have passed a psych test, someone maybe helped him?
Maybe not,
Good job to the real cops...

**Willowdared** · 02-13-07, 12:22 PM

Wow! I feel for the officers, and the other recruits in the academy.

**10-42Adam** · 02-13-07, 08:14 PM

Sounds like that dude went psycho. Great job to the Officers who put an end to that situation.

And molotov cocktails?! Who uses them anymore?! haha...

**Vendetta** · 02-13-07, 08:24 PM

Anyone can pass the background and psych evals.

I mean do you really know what you hired until the rubber meets the road?

**Rhino** · 02-13-07, 11:01 PM

Yeah- the psych evals aren't there to see if you're crazy. They're there to see if you are crazy enough. Clearly, he was.

What I find disgusting is that anyone would go that far for LVMPD (don't they have a years-long waiting list?) and then want out? What a effing puss. I'd give my first born if they'd take me right now. Police for my 8 hours and then spend the rest drinking and gambling. Who needs a house?

**Iron Man** · 02-14-07, 01:17 AM

Since when where police recruits immune from being piecesof shit? Hell even other LEOs for that matter...

**Hannibal** · 02-14-07, 01:31 AM

Still, thats a phuct-up story. I wonder what set him off? I got a shiny nickle that says it had to do with a chick.

Maybe she dumped him for the real poh-leece.

**Star Man** · 02-14-07, 09:06 AM

You never know, we had a recruit racing in a personally owned sports car (while in uniform after leaving work) with another one when an on duty tried to stop him. He ran and a pursuit ensued. He used his portable radio to disrupt our transmissions by keying up when we talked, and dodged stop stick locations that way. We got him 2 counties over when he started to run out of gas and his portable no longer worked. In car radios were all that worked that far away.

You never know what pressure or stress will do to a new guy.