City of Rochester, MN Police Department Press Release
The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) is investigating a use of deadly force involving the Rochester Police Department (RPD).
On March 11 around 9:30 p.m., officers were dispatched to an apartment on the 19-hundred block of Ashland Dr. NW for a domestic-related call involving a man reported to be experiencing a mental health crisis.
Preliminary information indicates officers responded to the residence along with a social worker from the Crisis Response Team. After speaking with the man, it was determined he was a threat to himself and others, and he was placed on a 72-hour emergency hold.
A struggle ensued while officers were attempting to take the man into custody; he grabbed hold of one officer’s firearm during the struggle. Another officer then shot the man.
Officers and paramedics administered life-saving measures, the man was transported to Mayo Clinic Hospital, St. Marys campus, where he was pronounced dead.
RPD requested that the BCA Force Investigation Unit (FIU) conduct an independent investigation, which is standard whenever deadly force is used by a police officer in Minnesota.