In the past six days, police and deputies have killed three men in the Fresno region
Three men have been killed by law enforcement officers in the Fresno region in the past six days.
The killings by police and deputies happened in three different counties in and around the central San Joaquin Valley.
Tulare County
The most recent killing involved both Tulare police officers and Tulare County Sheriff’s deputies, according to the office.
Tulare police were following up on a report Wednesday of an alarm sounding in the 1200 block of O Street, which is south of Bardsley Avenue, before sending out an alert to lookout for a stolen white truck, according to a news release.
Deputies found a truck fitting the description in an orchard near Cartmill Avenue and West Street after 1 a.m. Thursday, according to the sheriff’s office.
The news release said the 38-year-old man did not comply with police and deputies at the scene. A Taser used on him “didn’t work,” before he pulled a gun, the sheriff’s office said.
Multiple law enforcement officers fired on him, and he died at the scene.
Mariposa County
A man was shot to death Wednesday afternoon after a 911 caller reported a break-in at First Baptist Church of Mariposa, which also has a school. He had a knife, according to the Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office.
The office has released few details, but said on Facebook about 1:20 p.m. Wednesday that a man was dead.
Three hours earlier, the school at the church had been placed on lock down though the sheriff’s office said the students were not under threat, according to an earlier Facebook post.
The man died at the scene.
Madera County
Police in Madera killed a man who they say pointed a gun at officers about 8:30 p.m. Saturday near Ellis and Merced streets.
Someone reported seeing a man in the area who was moving the slide on a handgun, police said in an update on Wednesday.
The man did not comply with officers as the approached him and he pointed a gun at police, according to a news release on Facebook.
He was identified Wednesday police as 29-year-old Jose Soliz.
Madera police made the unusual decision to release video they described as a “critical incident” that did not include the shooting. The video does not include sound so it’s unclear what the officers are saying.
“The video stops moments before the shots are fired, out of respect for the family,” the Madera police post on Facebook said.
