By Cathy Locke
A baseball bat-wielding man was fatally shot by a Sacramento Police officer Tuesday afternoon after he reportedly bashed out windows of businesses on 24th Street in the Curtis Park neighborhood, police reported.
Police received a call about 3:30 p.m. about a man with a baseball bat smashing windows at 24th Street and Second Avenue, said Sgt. Andrew Pettit, police spokesman. He reportedly struck windows at a convenience store, an ATM at that store, then at Crepeville restaurant.
The first officer who arrived in the area, located the man at 24th Street and Barnett Avenue, according to a Police Department news release. The officer directed the man to drop the bat on the ground, but the man refused to acknowledge the officer and continued to walk northbound on 24th Street toward Broadway, police said. The officer walked parallel to the man and continued to direct him to drop the bat.
The man suddenly stopped and faced the officer, cocked the baseball bat as if he were going to swing it and advanced on the officer. The officer, fearing for his safety, fired multiple shots from his handgun, striking the man in the upper body, Pettit said.
The shooting occurred outside the River City Deli on 24th Street. Pettit said the officer and numerous witnesses said the man refused to put down the bat and advanced toward the officer, swinging the bat.
A neighborhood resident who said he witnessed the shooting disputed the Police Department's account, saying the man did put down the bat.
Tony Catelli said he heard sirens and ran to the corner. He said he saw a man kind of dancing around with a bat.
The man didn't respond to the first command by police to put down the bat, Catelli said. But after the second command, Catelli said, "He threw it down and sort of stepped back with his hands in the air."
Pettit said the officer who fired the shots has been placed on administrative leave in keeping with Police Department policy for officer-involved shootings. The officer has been with the police department for eight years.
Pettit said the Police Department's homicide, internal affairs, professional standards and crime scene investigations units are investigating the shooting in conjunction with the city's Office of Public Safety Accountability.
The Bee's Hector Amezcua contributed to this report.
Photo caption: A Sacramento Police Officer stands near the site were a man carrying a bat was fatally shot by a police officer when, according to police, he was seen breaking windows of cars and businesses at 24th Street at Second Avenue, near Broadway, in Sacramento on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2011. Photo by Hector Amezcua
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