SAN DIEGO (CNS) - San Diego police Saturday named the nine-year department veteran who shot and wounded a 45-year-old man who had been threatening people in Mission Bay Park on Wednesday.
Michael Weaver was identified as the officer who shot Lance Tamayo, who was allegedly waving a pistol at people in Mission Bay Park Wednesday, SDPD Sgt. Manuel Del Toro said.
Tamayo called police from the 2800 block of North Mission Bay Drive shortly after 11 a.m. Wednesday and told dispatchers he intended to shoot himself, Del Toro said.
Patrol personnel arrived to find Tamayo sitting in his car in a parking area near De Anza Cove. They contacted him by phone and spoke with him for about 15 minutes before he agreed to surrender.
He got out of the vehicle, but soon returned to it and retrieved a loaded 9-mm pistol, the sergeant said.
Tamayo then "pointed his gun recklessly at various people in the park," at a police helicopter circling overhead and at the nearby officers, prompting Weaver to shoot him in the abdomen, Del Toro alleged.
The suspect fell to the ground, but his gun remained within reach and he continued failing to comply with the officers' commands, Del Toro said. Finally, the personnel were able to subdue him with non-lethal rounds and take him into custody.
Tamayo remained hospitalized Friday in critical but stable condition, Del Toro said.