1 killed in 2nd fatal Ogden police shootout in a week

OGDEN, Utah — Officers shot and killed an individual after the person fired a weapon at the officers who were trying to track down someone suspected in a disturbance reported early Tuesday, police said.

It was the second fatal police shooting in Ogden in a week.

The chain of events began when officers responded to a report of some kind of disturbance on 25th Street near 100 East shortly before 1:30 a.m.

“An individual was reported to have a gun,” Deputy Police Chief Jake Sube, with the Ogden Police Department said.

As officers arrived, Sube said, the suspect took off in a vehicle that turned out to be stolen. As police tracked the suspect’s vehicle, it fled north.  Police eventually stopped it in the 700 block of 8th St.

“Upon the officers’ arrival at 8th Street, the driver of the suspect got out and began to fire a weapon at two officers, who had not been able to get out of their vehicles,” the deputy chief said.

“One of the officers was able to make his way out of his vehicle and return fire.”

“The suspect sustained fatal injuries, and died at the scene,” Sube said.

That officer is on administrative leave, while the shooting is being investigated by the Weber-Morgan Critical Incident Task Force.

The individual, whose name and age, and gender have not yet been released, was shot at least once and was pronounced dead at the scene. The two officers who were shot at were not injured.

A neighbor who did not want to be identified said there was a huge police turnout.  

The incident is the second Ogden police shooting death in a week. On June 6, Brian Dee Simonton, 37, was shot and killed in a shootout with officers responding to a report that the man was violating a protective order and acting strange at an apartment complex. An officer wounded in the shootout was released from a hospital the following day. He was struck in the lower arm by a bullet that traveled up through his arm and grazed him in the chest, although it didn’t enter his chest.

Nine officers in the Ogden Police Department are now on administrative leave.  

“Both events involved officers being shot at, and needing to return fire,” Sube said. “These incidents have an undeniable impact on both the officers and the community.“

Despite having nine officers on paid administrative leave, the department had been fully staffed at 149 officers for several months and does not believe this will impact service.

“Despite these challenges, we remain committed to maintaining a higher standard of police service to ensure the safety and well-being of our community,” the deputy chief said. 

“These incidences have an undeniable impact on both the officers and the community,” Sube said. “We are aware of the emotional toll that they take.”