Bodycam footage released from officer-involved shooting in Tucson of an armed man
By: The Pima Regional Critical Incident Team has released bodycam footage from an officer-involved shooting that took place in February.
A briefing shared by PRCIT said officers from Tucson Police Department responded to a call just after 1:30 a.m. on Feb. 14, reporting a mental health crisis.
A mental health professional had called TPD, alerting them to a man who was making threats against his own life, and possibly in possession of a firearm. They had been talking to the man for nearly 30 minutes before contacting TPD.
At one point during the mental health professional's conversation with the man in question, they were reporting hearing what sounded like a gunshot.
911 Caller: "I'm a crisis counselor from 988 in Alameda County, California.
"I'm calling because I had a three-way call initiated by a person from California with their friend who was in Arizona.
"The friend was reporting thoughts of suicide and having a gun. The call just disconnected, and we may believe that we heard a gunshot."
Officers from Operations Division East were then dispatched to a home on E. Calle Jupiter in an attempt to find the man. They eventually found him walking on Kolb Rd. holding a firearm.
A sergeant with training in hostage negotiation was able to get in contact with the man via cell phone, talking to him for nearly 15 minutes.
However, the man refused to surrender his gun and continued to walk down the road, according to the briefing. That's when Officer Barrie Pedersen, an 18-year veteran of the police force, fired one shot, hitting the man.
Bodycam footage shows officers approach the man, identified as 29-year-old Jacques Taylor. They discovered a handgun and a bullet casing, which they believe to be the gunshot that the mental health professional heard over the phone.
Taylor was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. It is unclear whether he faces any charges related to the incident.
PCSD and the Oro Valley Police Department are conducting a criminal investigation, while TPD is evaluating whether the shooting violated department policy.