Officials in Clark County (Wash.) say they are reviewing how dispatchers handled a neighborhood shooting incident and a subsequent multi-agency SWAT response that led to an innocent man being shot by officers who were confused by conflicting radio traffic. The county district attorney has already cleared the officers of any wrong-doing, but the injured man’s attorney says he’s planning legal action. Last month a county resident shot a neighbor over a long-running property dispute, and then fled into a nearby woods. Meanwhile, an area resident was enroute to his security guard job, noticed the suspect’s car parked in an out-of-the-way area, and stopped to investigate. He dialed 911 to report the car, but dispatchers neither warned him of the original shooting or the nearby police search for the suspect. They also didn’t ask for the caller’s description, or then warn SWAT officers in the area about the caller’s presence near the suspect’s car. As the search continued, officers spotted the man who dialed 911, believed it was the shooting suspect returning to his car, and opened fire. The caller was armed with a handgun and fired back, believing someone from a nearby overpass was shooting at him—he never heard police give any warnings. He was shot in the leg by the officers, and dialed 911 again to report he had been shot. Later in an ambulance, the caller heard officers say, “Is this the guy we shot?” Only then did he realize that police had shot him. The comm center investigation should be complete within a week, officials say. Read more about the incident here, and listen to 911 calls here.
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