SPD: Domestic violence suspect killed in officer involved shooting

Tonight Seattle Police announced a man died from his injuries following an officer involved shooting in Columbia City on Wednesday afternoon. Officers say the man shot at his girlfriend after beating her, and then fled with their infant. Chief Carmen Best said during a press conference Friday, officers were very concerned about the baby's safety and ultimately shot the suspect while he still had the child in his arms. She said the infant was not harmed.

When asked if the man was armed at the time of the shooting, Chief Best said those are details she didn't have at the moment. Chief Best said  she doesn't yet know much about the case, and only spoke out about it because it all started with a domestic violence call.  "The reason I've asked you here is to highlight an example of a tragic conclusion following
a domestic violence incident. Since the first of March domestic violence calls has gone up more than 25% this increase really appears to correlate with the COVID-19 pandemic and we know that everyone is simply not safe when they stay at home, my biggest fear is that we will continue to see domestic violence increase across the city."

SPD has been voicing their concerns about an increase in domestic violence throughout the stay at home order and have consistently reminded the public they are here to help and there are resources to help keep everyone safe.

When it comes to the officer involved shooting, SPD says details about the suspect and more on what led up to the shooting, including the release of body cam footage will come out in the future. They say the officer involved is a 15-year veteran of the department has no prior history of officer involved shootings.