A man sought by police in Vallejo after he allegedly used his car to crash into police vehicles was shot and wounded by police during execution of an arrest warrant at a home in unincorporated Contra Costa County.
Investigators in Vallejo had been looking for a man identified as Kevin DeCarlo, 20, of that city since he was allegedly involved in a police pursuit May 25. That pursuit was terminated with officers seeking and obtaining an arrest warrant for DeCarlo with an attached bail amount of $100,000.
On May 27, investigators reportedly spotted DeCarlo in Vallejo, the suspect fleeing officers attempting to take him into custody and allegedly crashing his car into a police cruiser. Police said DeCarlo was able to flee the scene and got away on foot – until investigators determined he was staying at a home in the 4000 block of Ellis Road near Martinez.
Plainclothes officers surrounded the home at around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, with witnesses reporting several unmarked police cars in the area at the time, when DeCarlo allegedly attempted to escape – once again using his car to ram a police unit.
Officers moving in on DeCarlo on foot regarded the use of the car as an assault on law enforcement and opened fire, hitting the suspect several times. He was taken to a local hospital with wounds police described as “serious.” A Vallejo police officer sustained minor injuries and was also taken to a hospital where he was treated and released, police said.
The shooting is being investigated by the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office and the Vallejo Police Department.
Sounding more and more like Baghdad out there.
Holy Moly
Heard the helo. Got the alert right after. Thanks!
Hope no one was hurt. Sounded pretty crazy.
“One witness said they thought the gunshots were initially fireworks going off.”
With a bit of studying you can learn to tell the difference between gun shots and firecrackers (on average). This will help prevent the number of erroneous “shots fired” calls to 911 on 7/4 and 1/1. It could also save your life.
“We got a runner!”
Hard to believe and harder to understand how someone could act this way.
I can’t tell the difference between gunshots and fireworks. So I goggled it. I was trying to take Tom’s advice.
“How can you tell the difference between gunshots and fireworks?” “You can’t.”
One officer was quoted he couldn’t tell the difference, especially with a low caliber gun.
They’re advising “call 1-877-ASK-LAPD OR CALL 911.” Erring on the side of caution will save your life. When in doubt, call the police.
Is there a police policy for firing at a fleeing car? I take it ramming a police car justifies the open fire to protect the life of fellow officers right??
Thats a lot of lead flying around.
@Danielle – Google harder. The info is out there. One can choose to be informed or uninformed. That choice is always a personal one.
@Kim I would guess different police agencies would have different policies regarding when it is okay to shoot and when it isn’t. I would also assume most agencies allow the officers to fire in order to protect their life or someone else’s.
I keep hearing crime is down and there’s this sort of thing happening.
The car representing the weapon and potential danger to cops. I get it. Is the guy going to make it?
I don’t like second guessing people who have to make split second decisions so I’ll just say that if someone was aiming a car at me and I had a gun in my hand I’d probably shoot at them too.