Man with bike pump shot by California sergeant. Initially, sheriff said it was a bat
A Madera County sergeant shot a man wielding a bicycle tire pump, which law enforcement initially described as a bat, video released Wednesday showed.
The video shows an Aug. 12 encounter between Sgt. Nicholas Davis and a man identified as Timothy John Bray Jr., 46, of Madera.
Davis notified Madera County dispatch about 10:45 p.m. that day he was going to make contact with a man whom Davis said was carrying a baseball bat in the area of Krohn and Ellis streets in Madera, according to deputies.
The sheriff’s office said Bray had a baseball bat in a news release on Facebook the day after the shooting.
Bray, who was in the roadway, appeared to motion with the bike pump for a car driven by Davis to go around him, video shows. The bike pump was illuminated by the cruiser’s headlights.
Bray was shown dragging a stroller and a bicycle, video shows.
He walked away from Davis as the sergeant gave him orders, video shows. Bray turned with the pump up around his head, saying “get away from me.”
The video on a dark, unlit rural street is difficult to make out, but the sheriff’s office said Bray wielded the pump like a weapon. Davis fired three rounds, striking Bray, the office said in its video.
Bray has since been released from the hospital and was arrested on suspicion of resisting arrest and assault with a deadly weapon on a peace officer.
The shooting by the sergeant was being investigated by the sheriff’s office as well as separately by the Madera Police Department, according to authorities.
Davis was placed on routine administrative leave but has since been cleared to return to work, sheriff’s spokesperson Kayla Gates said Wednesday.
This story was originally published November 16, 2022 at 12:22 PM.
