Vacaville Police Officers Shoot, Kill Unarmed Suspect Following Car Chase

VACAVILLE (CBS SF) -- A man fatally shot by two Vacaville police officers following a vehicle pursuit Monday was not armed, a police lieutenant said Tuesday afternoon.

Police were planning to release the man's name after meeting with his family Tuesday, Lt. Mark Donaldson said. The names of the two officers involved in the shooting have not been released.

Police were reviewing video from dash mounted and body worn cameras to determine what led to the fatal shooting, Donaldson said.

The pursuit began around 12:40 a.m. Monday when an officer was driving behind a white 1998 Honda Accord, which was determined to have been stolen out of Davis, police said. The officer followed the Honda on eastbound Interstate Highway 80 and waited for other officers to also respond, Donaldson said.

The Honda failed to stop when officers turned on their patrol car lights and sirens as the pursuit led onto the Leisure Town Road off-ramp and onto Orange Drive, police said.

Officers broadcast they successfully performed a Pursuit Intervention Technique, which is intended to make a vehicle spin out or stop, Donaldson said. The vehicle, however, continued onto the Nut Tree Road overpass just north of Orange Drive. Officers then broadcast shots were fired, Donaldson said.

The officers fired their weapons striking the driver of the Honda, Donaldson said. Police did not say how man shots were fired.

Life-saving measures were performed but the driver died at the scene from his injuries.

The account of the incident on the Vacaville Police Department's Facebook page and police radio traffic may have led to assumptions the Honda driver fired at police, Donaldson said.

"The suspect was not armed and he did not shoot at the officers," Donaldson said.

The driver was the only one in the Honda, and an officer suffered a minor injury and was released from a local hospital, Donaldson said.

Vacaville police and the Solano County District Attorney's Office are investigating the shooting.

"We are thankful our officers are okay but at the same time saddened this man lost his life. Our thoughts go out to this man's family and our officers dealing with this difficult situation," Donaldson said in a statement.

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