BART officer suffers cuts, bruises following officer involved shooting
A BART police officer is suffering from cuts and bruises on his arm this morning as investigators try to determine why a suspect reportedly armed with a knife caused police to shoot and kill him on the platform of the Civic Center/UN Plaza BART Station.
Shortly after the officer-involved-shooting, BART police investigators say they found glass from what appears to be a shattered bottle and knives at the scene.
What Happened
The officer-involved shooting happened not long after BART Police dispatchers received a call of a wobbly drunk on the platform of the Civic Center/UN Plaza Station around 9:30 pm. By 9:45 pm two BART officers had arrived on the platform. One minute later, the officers reported shooting the suspect. Paramedics took the suspect to the hospital where medical personnel pronounced him dead about an hour later. Investigators are still trying to determine exactly what happened and whether the suspect was the same person originally reported as wobbly and drunk.
About the Suspect and Officers
At this point, police don’t know much about the suspect except that he is a White male. The two officers involved in the shooting are White and Asian. The California Peace Officers Bill of Rights prevents BART from releasing the names of the officers.
What’s Next
The BART Police Department and the San Francisco Police Department are conducting separate parallel criminal investigations. Standard procedure requires investigators to question the two officers involved in the shooting and put them on administrative leave during the investigation.
About Train Service
The Civic Center/UN Plaza Station will open to full BART service at 8 a.m on July 4th, as trains are running on a Sunday schedule. However, police did close the station immediately after the shooting – and it remained closed all night. BART trains ran through the station but did not stop. Muni trains also ran through it and did not stop either.
BART Police Chief Kenton Rainey will hold a news conference at 10:30 am at BART’s administrative headquarters at 300 Lakeside Drive in Oakland. The news conference will be on the 18th floor in the main conference room.