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Denver police release bodycam footage of fatal shooting involving officer

By June 25, 2024 | updated 1 year ago

DPD OIS June 16
The Denver Police Department released the body-worn camera footage of the officer-involved shooting that left 52-year-old Miguel Tapia dead after she allegedly moved toward officers with a hunting knife.
Courtesy of the Denver Police Department

The Denver Police Department released the body-worn camera footage of a shooting involving a police officer that left one person dead in the Ballpark District on June 16.

The shooting took place in the intersection of north Broadway and Lawrence Street around noon June 16, when officers responded to a person — later identified as 52-year-old Miguel Tapia — standing in the intersection allegedly telling passing motorists to hit them. Police identified Tapia as a transgender person. 

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Courtesy of the Denver Police Department


A Denver Park Ranger was in the area and told DPD that Tapia had a knife with a seven-inch blade in a bag, Major Crimes Division Commander Matt Clark said during a follow-up press conference on Tuesday.

As three officers got out of their vehicles with pointed tasers, Tapia began speaking Spanish and walking toward the officers, while holding a bag in each hand, according to the released footage. 

One officer could be heard responding to Tapia in Spanish.

Around 15 seconds later, Tapia put a bookbag on the shoulder and pulled a knife from the waistband. Tapia then approached the officers. Two officers fired three taser cartridges at Tapia, who continued to move forward. 

The officers backed up, with one seemingly saying “shoot him” to the other. The three officers then pulled their handguns and fired 12 rounds at Tapia. 

After Tapia went down, police called for an ambulance and began rendering aid, Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said in a press conference immediately after the shooting. 

Tapia was pronounced dead on the scene and was later identified by the Office of the Medical Examiner. The examiner’s office, along with DPD, have yet to be able to locate and notify Tapia’s family or friends. 

The two officers and one sergeant involved in the shooting have never been involved in a prior police-shooting incident, Clark said. They will be placed on a modified duty status, as they complete DPD’s reintegration program while the Critical Incident Response Team investigates the shooting.

“The presence of the knife, the proximity that that individual got to the officers with the knife, I think makes their response appropriate,” Thomas said Tuesday.

Sage Kelley

Reporter

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