 Hello, my name is Matt Clark, and I'm a Lieutenant in the Denver Police Department's Major Crimes Division. This critical incident debriefing is intended to provide you with information regarding an officer-involved shooting that occurred in the area of I-25 and 8th Avenue on October 21st, 2019. You are about to see relevant video footage and learn about other evidence and police procedures related to the case, so you have an understanding of the details of this incident. The use of deadly force by a police officer demands a thorough investigation be completed. The Denver Police Department is committed to ensuring a full and timely investigation of these serious incidents. This allows for a comprehensive examination of the officer's actions to determine compliance with state statutes and department policies. In accordance with legislation passed in 2015, the investigation of police shootings in Denver are conducted by a multi-agency investigative team made up of members from the Denver and Aurora Police Department homicide units, as well as the Denver District Attorney's Office. All critical incident investigations are actively monitored by the Office of the Independent Monitor. A word of caution. The images and information you're about to see may be disturbing. When a police officer uses force to arrest a suspect or defend against an attack, it can be graphic and difficult to watch. In addition, there may be strong language used by those shown in the video. Viewer discretion is advised. On Monday, October 21st, 2019, around 2 p.m., Denver police officers were called to the Car Wash Express at 6th Avenue and Santa Fe Drive on an attempted robbery, car-jacking incident. The victim in that incident was interviewed by officers and explained that he was cleaning the passenger side of his vehicle at the self-serve vacuums when the suspect, who was later identified as 36-year-old Adam Martinez, opened his driver's door and entered his vehicle. The victim reported Mr. Martinez was holding a box cutter-type knife with a blade and demanded his keys. The victim was able to escape unharmed with the vehicle keys. He reported the incident to employees at the Car Wash, who assisted him in calling 911. Denver 911, what is the address of your emergency? It is 603 San Jose Drive, Denver, Colorado. Okay, and is that in between 6th and 7th? Yes, that is right by where the car wash express. Okay, to make sure exactly what happened. So we had a customer get jumped at Night Point by an individual in a neon hoodie. He's running north right now through the alley. Okay, you mentioned he was dumped. What was he trying to do? He was trying to stay in a car, right? Yeah, he was trying to be a car jack. Mr. Martinez briefly remained in the vehicle before exiting and walking westbound towards Calameth Street. Mr. Martinez was followed away from the car wash by other citizens who were in the area. With the assistance of civilian witnesses, Denver Police Officer Dwayne Parton located the suspect in the 600 block of Calameth Street. Officer Parton attempted to contact Mr. Martinez in the parking lot of 665 Calameth Street. Officer Parton drew his firearm and ordered Mr. Martinez to get on the ground. Get on the ground! Mr. Martinez did not comply with these orders. Instead, he began walking west through the parking lot. At that time, Officer Anna Munoz arrived on the west side of the parking lot and attempted to assist in containing Mr. Martinez. Mr. Martinez immediately directed his attention towards Officer Munoz and began walking directly towards her while drinking from a small bottle of alcohol. Mr. Martinez stated, quote, that gun is mine as he continued to approach the uniformed officer. As Mr. Martinez got within several feet of Officer Munoz, Officer Parton came from behind and deployed a taser towards Mr. Martinez. The taser device was not effective and did not appear to impact Mr. Martinez. Mr. Martinez then went directly towards Officer Munoz marked patrol vehicle and entered the driver's seat. The keys to the vehicle were in the ignition and the vehicle was running because the officer previously exited the vehicle quickly to assist with containing Mr. Martinez. Inside the police vehicle that was taken was a department issued AR-15 rifle. The rifle was in a soft carrying case on the passenger seat. The rifle was not loaded, but there were loaded magazines inside the carrying case. Mr. Martinez began driving the police vehicle eastbound through the parking lot and exited onto Northbound Kalamaz Street. Mr. Martinez then traveled westbound on 6th Avenue. While Mr. Martinez was driving the stolen police vehicle, the overhead emergency lights were flashing. Mr. Martinez took the exit for Federal Boulevard from 6th Avenue and was observed by officers who were positioned above on Federal Boulevard. Mr. Martinez was briefly stuck in traffic but made his way to the top of the off-ramp by weaving through traffic and using a shoulder. Near the top of the ramp, Mr. Martinez had Officer Munoz's rifle in his hand and pointed it at uniformed officers who had stopped traffic on Federal Boulevard. Officers did not fire their weapons at this time out of extreme concern for the other people on the ramp. A civilian witness who was at the top of the off-ramp was interviewed and described seeing Mr. Martinez driving the police vehicle with lights on, frantically trying to get around her vehicle. When Mr. Martinez drove by her, she recognized he was not wearing a uniform and observed him pull out a rifle and point it towards the officers that were positioned on Federal Boulevard. Officer Wesley Keeland was one of the officers on Federal Boulevard and his reaction upon recognizing the rifle was pointed at him was captured on a halo camera at Federal and 6th Avenue. The suspect continued northbound on Federal Boulevard and then turned eastbound onto 8th Avenue with multiple police vehicles following. Recognizing that Mr. Martinez was continuing to loot officers and had obtained possession of the rifle, Officer Keeland attempted to employ a pursuit immobilization technique, also known as a pit maneuver. Multiple attempts were made to pit the stolen police vehicle while it was being driven eastbound on 8th Avenue. These initial efforts were unsuccessful. Officers noted that Mr. Martinez continued to have the rifle in his hand and was pointing it out the window while he was driving the vehicle. In the area of 8th Avenue in Zunai Street, a pit maneuver was successfully completed and the stolen patrol vehicle stopped. The police vehicle came to rest and was contained in the westbound lanes of 8th Avenue underneath I-25. As a result of the pit maneuver, Officer Keeland's police vehicle came to rest immediately next to the driver's side of the stolen vehicle and the driver's door of Officer Keeland's vehicle was pinned shut. Other officers quickly approached from the west and observed Mr. Martinez was holding a rifle. Fearing for the safety of Officer Keeland and the other officers present, officers John Allred, Ishmael Lopez, and Vincent Vazquez discharged their firearms at Mr. Martinez, striking him multiple times. The officers stopped firing their guns when they believed Mr. Martinez was no longer a threat. Mr. Martinez and the rifle were removed from the vehicle. He was immediately assessed by paramedics who were in the area. Mr. Martinez was pronounced deceased at the scene. Following a police shooting, any officers involved in the incident are separated and assigned to a supervisor once a situation is stabilized. Involved officers remain in the company of the assigned supervisor throughout the initial investigation of the incident. Through the investigation, it was determined that a total of 37 rounds were fired by the officers. Investigators recovered a black Colt M4 carbine AR-15 at the scene. There was no magazine in the weapon. The weapon had been switched from safe to fire. A 30-round magazine for the rifle was located on the driver's floorboard underneath the vehicle's pedals. The rifle magazine was not previously in that location prior to Mr. Martinez taking possession of the vehicle. The recovered AR-15 was confirmed to be the rifle carried by Officer Munoz, and Mr. Martinez's DNA was found on that rifle. Investigators located a box cutter type knife in the front pocket of Mr. Martinez's jeans. This box cutter matched the description of the weapon provided by the victim of the attempted carjacking. A toxicology report revealed the presence of alcohol and methamphetamine in Mr. Martinez's system. All officers assigned to uniform patrol duties have been issued body-worn cameras. These devices are generally worn at chest level by patrol officers and are capable of recording both audio and video. Prior to being activated by the officer, the body-worn camera maintains a 30-second video buffer. Once the officer activates the camera, the 30-second buffer video is captured and the camera starts recording both audio and video. It is important to note that a body-worn camera captures a general perspective of what is in the camera's view. However, this footage may or may not be what the officer actually saw or perceived. At times, an officer's movement or hand positioning may inadvertently block the camera view. Additionally, the camera may not capture light in the same way as an officer's eye. Here are the complete body-camera videos that are relevant to the initial contact, vehicle pursuit, and weapon discharge for this incident. Tom, 4-3-3-0 23 Adam, he's still westbound. I'll be coming up on Federal. I'm trying to catch up. 23 Adam, I think he's right before Federal is stuck in traffic. I can't turn around. Should be east of Federal. Westbound, 6. Looks like he's stuck in traffic. Lane 1, I can't get around. Okay, there's Carter going west from Federal. Go to 10 right now, is that them? Does he have the AR? Vehicle to dispatch, can you advise EEB of the unit number and tell them to turn that police radio off? I did try to tase him before he got into the car. So I don't know if he has that in him. 1-10 vehicle, EEB is closed. We're trying to find another number for him. Carter, can you advise him? He's right there, right? He goes down the right, the left. 1-4-3-7, I'm on this, so watch me to the original scene as well. Okay sir, are you on team? I'll get there, sure. District, we provide you here. 1-3 vehicle, are you on route? 1-4-10, go ahead and come up here. I'm sure I've already hit the floor, guys. This is awesome. 4-21, David, that's very... 7-9, he's northbound Federal from 6. 4-11-9 to hold the air, he's northbound Federal from 6, coming up on 8. He's right here, sorry, 7 in place, right there, right in front of you. 7-9 is still northbound on Federal, we're now eastbound on 8. Baker, take him out as soon as possible. Give me a car and I'll pit. We're eastbound 8th on Kenosa. He does have the rifle out. Take the rifle out the window. I saw him, yeah. Alright, scene's clear. Vince, I'll be with you. Okay. Smash it. Take the rifle out the window. Good job, sir. Scene's clear. Thank you, sir. The District Attorney will review the details of this incident and determine if the officer's actions were in compliance with Colorado law. After the District Attorney renders a decision, the Denver Police Department's Internal Affairs Bureau and Conduct Review Bureau will complete an administrative review of this case. The details of the case will be presented to a use of force review board made up of community members and police command officers who will determine whether the officer's actions were in compliance with the high standards expected of every Denver police officer related to policies, training, and tactics. For additional information regarding the investigation of critical incidents or the Denver Police Department's use of force policies, you may visit denvergov.org slash police. Thank you for taking the time to view this critical incident briefing.