Ogden Police Say Man Attacked Officers With Rock Before They Shot and Killed Him
Nov 10, 2018, 10:10 PM
OGDEN, Utah – Ogden police said 33-year-old Christopher William Parrish was the man shot and killed by officers Friday evening. The chief of police said Parrish attacked officers with a rock before they shot him.
Ogden Police Department Chief Randy Watt said customers at a Walmart along Wall Avenue in Ogden noticed a man acting suspiciously and flagged down a nearby officer around 6:45 Friday evening.
“Gave some indications that he wanted to fight people and was acting strange enough that they felt compelled to, when they saw this police officer, contact him and say ‘Hey, you need to do something about this’,” Watt said.
Watt said the officer tried to stop Parrish in his car in the parking lot, but he said Parrish sped away. He said Parrish went off the side of the road not far away, wrecking his vehicle. He said Parrish then ran from the officers, who chased him on foot. Watt said Parrish went into a yard along 21st Street where he confronted the officers.
“Picked up a softball-sized rock and charged the officers. The officers deployed two tasers, but the tasers were ineffective, and the individual continued to rapidly and violently attack the officers with the rock. When the tasers failed, the officers used their service firearms to stop this violent attack by the suspect,” Watt said.
Parrish was pronounced dead at the scene.
Watt said Parrish had no obvious ties to the Ogden area. He said Parrish was driving a Utah-registered vehicle that someone had let him use. He said Parrish was listed as a missing person in Montana and had warrants for his arrest in Arizona.
Watt said the officers were “fine” and he was investigators were still reviewing the evidence to see if the rock had made direct contact with officers. Watt said officers at the department wear body cameras and they are checking to see what video may have been captured. Both officers are on administrative leave pending an investigation by the Weber County Attorney’s Office and an internal investigation by the Ogden Police.
“We offer our condolences to the family of the deceased suspect and we also offer our comfort to our officers and their families,” Watt said.
