Cops
shoot man who may have tried to kill himself
by
Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau FORT DEFIANCE — Three Dilcon law enforcement officers
have been placed on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of
an investigation
into what might have been an attempted "suicide-by-cop" at
Casa Butte on Wednesday afternoon.
According to Sgt. Emerson Lee of the Dilcon Police District, the police
dispatcher received a call at 1:03 p.m. (DST) regarding a male who allegedly
was attempting
suicide. A short time earlier, at 12:18 p.m., police had received a "suspicious
call" from a male who did not identify himself but did use "some offensive
and abusive, vulgar language. The last remark he said on the phone was, 'I'm
going to kill myself,'" Sgt. Lee said. "The phone number could not
be traced. He hung up right away." Police believe the call came from a
cellular phone.
Upon receiving the second call at 1:03 p.m., Samuel Tsosie Sr. told police
that Jonathan Tsosie, 23, had attempted to commit suicide. Some knives and
a rifle
had been taken away from Jonathan, Tsosie Sr. said. He did not know whether
Jonathan might have taken drugs or consumed alcohol. Police were given a description
of
Jonathan, who was reported to be wearing blue jeans with a gray T-shirt and
a gray cap with the word "Arizona" printed on the cap.
Police Officer Christopher Kaye received the initial call and was dispatched
on the incident. Officer Clarence Bahe Jr. and Sgt. Clifton Smith also were
dispatched from Dilkon.
"Police Sgt. Smith met with Mr. Tsosie Sr. first on Sunflower Butte Road,
the turn-off to Tsosie's residence. At that time, Officer Bahe had arrived and
responded with Police Sgt. Smith to the residence. They were the first two to
arrive on the scene. They checked around the residence for the suspect until
Officer Kaye arrived as the third unit," Sgt. Lee said.
Almost immediately, Officer Bahe caught a glimpse of Jonathan fleeing on foot
south from the residence in a dry wash.
"Officer Bahe and Officer Kaye attempted to follow Jonathan on foot while
Police Sgt. Smith remained at the residence and proceeded to get closer in a
4-wheel Tahoe," Lee said.
Sgt. Smith could see his fellow officers giving chase on foot behind Jonathan,
but he was unable to get any closer due to the rough terrain. Sgt. Lee described
it as a "changing environment of washes, hill crests, cedar trees and
pinon."
Sgt. Smith tried to make radio contact with Officers Bahe and Kaye several
times as they trailed Jonathan's footprints through the wash.
"They found him and immediately Officer Bahe called back on the walkie-talkie,
stating, 'The suspect has a knife to his throat. The suspect has a knife to his
throat.' The information was rebroadcast to the dispatcher in Dilcon," Sgt.
Lee said.
"Right at 1400 that's 2 p.m. Police Officer Bahe called back on his walkie-talkie,
reporting that he used his duty weapon. He gave a code that means an officer
is involved in a shooting. ... The information was relayed back to the dispatcher
in Dilcon. Right after that statement that he used his duty weapon, Officer
Bahe immediately called back again that he was proceeding to do CPR."
Asked about the nature of the shooting, Sgt. Lee said, "After the suspect
was found, he was very uncooperative. He had a knife to his throat and he was
carrying a double-headed wooden ax. The officers tried to persuade and negotiate
with him to drop the knife and the ax. The suspect, which became the victim,
proceeded to an assault with the ax and the officer put him down.
"The officers reported that the suspect had a single bullet entrance to
the anterior lower right quadrant of his abdominal area. There was no visible
exit wound to the dorsal," Lee said. "The suspect stated to the officers,
'It did not come out. It's still in there.'"
Sgt. Smith located the officers and they tried to administer first-aid to the
victim and check his blood pressure, Sgt. Lee said. However, "the suspect
was very belligerent and very uncooperative. The suspect kept biting the blood
pressure cuff and ripping it off of his left arm. The officer did state that
he had an unfamiliar strong odor emitting from his breath," Lee said.
EMS personnel from Winslow Indian Hospital responded to the area but were unable
to get close to the incident location due to the dry terrain.
"The ambulance got stuck several times. The EMTs and the officers proceeded
on foot with all of the excess equipment and a backboard to get the victim out
of the terrain. It took them quiet some time to get the victim out of the area," Sgt.
Lee said.
Officer Andre Leonard escorted Jonathan Tsosie, for security purposes, as he
was airlifted to Flagstaff Medical Center by Guardian 1 medical helicopter.
"The suspect underwent surgery and is expected to live," Sgt. Lee said.
Federal charges against Tsosie are pending. A rifle was confiscated from the
scene, but it is not known at this time whether it had been discharged.
"The three officers involved in this incident are on administrative leave
until further notice," according to the sergeant. None of the officers
were injured in the incident, which occurred 2.5 miles southeast of Sunflower
Butte
Road in the Casa Butte community.
The Department of Criminal Investigation from Dilcon, FBI from Flagstaff, and
the Internal Affairs Investigation, Navajo Department of Law Enforcement, are
investigating.
Lee said Dilcon Police received "positive response" from surrounding
agencies, during the nearly two-hour incident. Responding were Chinle-, Window
Rock-, and Tuba City Police Districts, Navajo Environmental Protection Agency
Law Enforcement, Navajo Nation Rangers Department, Hopi Rangers Department,
the Departments of Criminal Investigation from Dilcon and Window Rock, Critical
Incident
Specialists from the Navajo Nation, and the police chaplain with the Navajo
Department of Law Enforcement.
Several community programs and officials donated time, water, and other assistance
in the interest of the Dilcon Police District, Lee said. |
April
24, 2004
Selected Stories:
City
no longer to keep things bottled up?
Cops
shoot man who may have tried to kill himself
VP Dayish asks Bush to rethink BIA cuts
Union
leader ousted over ed fund dispute
Area merchants hit with bogus money
orders
Homeland
sercurity's Ridge praises Cibola County's emergency prep
$10,000
drawing benefits animals, humane societys
Religion — Faith
sharing at Gallup's Na'Nizhoozhi Center
Death |
