A 34-year-old Montgomery man was killed in an officer-involved shooting early Monday, following an encounter at the rear of Montgomery City Hall.
Shortly after 4 a.m., the shooting victim, identified as Eric Young, “was seen doing something behind City Hall — it’s not clear yet just what it was — when the officer confronted him” and apparently tried to make an arrest, said Montgomery Police Chief Paris Workman.
The suspect then began moving up Third Avenue on foot toward the Montgomery Fire Department, with the officer following, when the situation “escalated,” Workman said, ending in the shooting of Young. The shooting took place on a sidewalk, according to the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office.
The officer, whose identity has not been released, was placed on administrative leave, pending the outcome of an investigation, which is standard practice in officer-involved shootings, Workman said.
The shooting was being investigated by the Montgomery Police Department’s detective unit and the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from Smithers City Police, Bridge Valley Community College Police, the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department and West Virginia State Police.
Although most of Montgomery lies within Fayette County, the shooting took place in the Kanawha County portion of the town, according to police.
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