No weapon found at scene where SCSO deputy shot and killed man
SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — The man shot and killed by a Spokane County Sheriff’s Office deputy may have been unarmed.
The Spokane Investigative Regional Response Team is now handling the investigation into the officer-involved shooting that killed 25-year-old Ethan A. Murray.
Deputies responded to an apartment complex in Spokane Valley after receiving reports of a disorderly male, later identified as Murray. The caller said Murray appeared to be high and was running in between children who were playing at the complex.
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Deputies attempted to contact Murray, but said he ignored them and walked away. SCSO said Murray failed to follow commands and ran toward a wooded area east of the complex. One of the deputies caught up to Murray near what appeared to be a homeless camp.
It was there that the deputy shot Murray. A backup deputy, who was a short distance away and downhill from where the shooting occurred, said they heard the deputy tell Murray numerous times to show his hands and that he didn’t want to hurt him. The responding deputy said Murray yelled expletives and refused to comply with commands.
READ: Man killed by Spokane Co. Sheriff’s deputy identified
A citizen witness reported Murray put his hand on his waist and the deputy repeatedly asked him to put it down. SIRR said Murray did not comply and appeared to pull something out of his pocket before the deputy fired his weapon.
According to the release from SIRR, no weapon has been found.
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