Deputies rarely drew guns, fired twice in 2005

from The Oregonian, by Wendy Owen


Washington County sheriff's deputies pulled their guns 404 times last year and fired twice, wounding a man in one case and hitting a car while shooting at a suspect in another.
On average, officers pulled their guns more than once a day. With 5,190 arrests in 2005, however, that means deputies drew their firearms in about 8 percent of those cases, according to a Washington County Sheriff's Office use of force analysis.

"The odds of displaying a gun are remote," sheriff's Sgt. John Black said.

When it is pulled, however, a firearm typically resolves the situation without being used, he said.

The exception over the past five years, according to The Oregonian archives, appears to be cases involving suicidal people. Deputies have shot and killed four people, including Lukus Glenn, since 2002, and nearly all were determined to be suicidal.

In 2002, a Washington County sheriff's deputy shot and killed a 38-year-old man in Hillsboro after a two-hour standoff. Daniel L. Flannigan was distraught over a breakup with his girlfriend and threatened to kill her and himself. Police found him outside her apartment with a gun that later turned out to be a pellet gun. When he walked toward officers, a sniper shot him.

In 2003, a Beaverton police officer and a Washington County sergeant each fired on and killed a 37-year-old gunman who had fired more than 30 times during a standoff with police after they were called to the address because of a suicidal man.

The officers were members of the county Tactical Negotiations Team.

In 2004, a Cedar Mill man was shot and killed in a similar scenario, although it was not officially determined to be a suicidal incident.

Neighbors called police after hearing explosions and seeing Warren D. Sercombe, 46, breaking windows in front of his home. Deputies saw a handgun on the roof of his car and ordered him to lie on the ground. Instead, he reached for the gun and a corporal shot him. Officers later found explosive cord in his waistband and boot.

Last year ended with no officer-involved shooting deaths in Washington County.