DA clears Lakewood officer in fatal shooting
DENVER – An investigation into the June 10 shooting death of a fleeing suspect clears the Lakewood Police officer who fired the fatal shots, Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey said Tuesday.
“The investigation and legal analysis of the shooting death of Eugene Paul Velarde have been completed, and I conclude that, under applicable Colorado law, no criminal charges are fileable against Lakewood Agent Devaney Braley,” Morrissey said in a letter to Lakewood Police Chief Kevin Paletta.
The letter was released Tuesday morning.
Velarde, 25, died after he was shot twice by Braley at Sloan’s Lake Park in Denver.
“We appreciate the thorough, timely, professional investigation by both the Denver Police Department and the Denver District Attorney’s Office. After reviewing their investigation, we too believe that our officer was acting in defense of himself and in defense of others, including many innocent citizens who were in the area that evening,” Paletta said in a statement issued through a Police Department spokesman.
The incident began in the parking lot of a liquor store at 65 S. Sheridan Boulevard when Velarde and his wife, Marie Estella Valles, reportedly got into a verbal confrontation with a man walking across the parking lot near their van. When the other man approached the van, Velarde brandished a handgun, according to police reports.
The pedestrian went inside the liquor store to call police and Velarde left the scene.
Braley and his partner, Marcia Cordova, responded to the felony menacing call within minutes of the report and spotted Velarde’s van heading north on Sheridan Boulevard near W. 12th Avenue, according to the DPD investigation.
The Lakewood officers attempted to stop the van using their flashing lights and siren, but Velarde tried to evade them.
After a short chase that went into Denver then returned to Lakewood, Velarde made a wide U-turn at W. 17th Avenue and rammed the pursuing LPD vehicle, according to Denver Police accounts. Cordova was briefly trapped inside the vehicle, but Braley was able to pursue Velarde, who had jumped from his vehicle and was running north through the park between the lake and Sheridan Boulevard.
Braley shot the suspect as Velarde turned, reached into his waistband and pulled out the handgun, the DPD report said.
”The suspect initially moved the gun down briefly to his left side and looked away from Agent Braley. They were still running in a southeast direction. The suspect then looked to the right at Agent Braley as he began bringing the gun up across the front of his body pointing it toward Agent Braley,” according to Morrissey’s report.
Braley told investigators he believed Velarde presented a threat not only to him, but to the lives of a number of by-standers in the park, as well.
As Velarde raised the weapon, Braley fired “five or six” times, striking Velarde with the last two shots, he told investigators.
Denver police found a .45 caliber handgun next to Velarde when they arrived on the scene and that weapon later was positively linked to Velarde.
Autopsy results found a trio of illegal drugs – cocaine, amphetamine and opiates – in Velarde’s bloodstream.
“The autopsy showed the presence of controlled substances in Velarde’s body and his criminal record shows a prior history of driving under the influence in 2008 while his license was revoked and without insurance. In addition to (it) being a felony for Velarde to possess a firearm, rather than leaving the firearm in the vehicle, he chose to exit the crashed vehicle in possession of the loaded semi-automatic pistol,” Morrissey said in his letter to Paletta.
“Velarde represented a direct and imminent deadly threat to Agent Braley and a potential threat to everyone in the area when he was shot. Based on Velarde’s non-compliant life-threatening actions, it was reasonable for Agent Braley to fear for his life and the lives of the other citizens.”
Davis said Lakewood Police will examine the report and the details of the incident to determine whether LPD policies and procedures were followed in the shooting.
He expects that inquiry to be completed within a week or so.
“What Denver has done, both the PD and the DA’s Office, is certainly going to be very advantageous to our administrative review. It should make it move along much faster and quicker,” Davis said.
