2 dead after Moorhead apartment shooting

April Baumgarten, Tasha Carvell and Michael McGurran | InForum

Two people have died in a Moorhead apartment shooting during which three Fargo officers exchanged gunfire, authorities said.

The three officers are on administrative leave as a result of the shooting that unfolded Monday night, Aug. 11, at an apartment complex in the 2400 block of Third Avenue North, Moorhead Police Chief Chris Helmick said Monday afternoon. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating the incident, he said.

The shooting happened after Moorhead officers responded shortly before 9 p.m. Monday to a domestic violence report at the apartment, according to authorities. A woman told officers she was assaulted by two individuals, Helmick said.

She also said two small children were inside the apartment, Helmick said.

“When officers attempted to make contact with the individuals inside the apartment, the officer encountered gunfire,” the police chief said.

Helmick said officers evacuated the surrounding apartments and requested help from the Red River Valley SWAT Team, a group of officers from area law enforcement. Officers then entered the apartment, where another exchange of gunfire took place, Helmick said.

Two adults in the apartment were hit by the gunfire, the chief said. One died at the scene and the second died at a local hospital, he said.

“I want to reiterate at this time that there is no ongoing threat to the public and we are not seeking individuals related to this case,” he said.

He declined to say whether the two suspects involved in the domestic violence report were the two shot and killed.

The woman who reported that she was assaulted in the domestic violence incident and the children were not harmed in the shooting, Helmick said. No law enforcement personnel were injured, he said.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is investigating the shooting, Helmick said. It’s unclear who fired their weapons first.

The BCA was processing the crime scene as of 4 p.m. Tuesday, when authorities held the press conference, Helmick said. For the most part, residents of the apartment were allowed back into their building, he said.

In a Tuesday morning interview with The Forum, Fargo Police Chief Dave Zibolski confirmed three Fargo officers, working as members of the SWAT team, “were involved in firing shots” at the scene.

He said at the press conference he couldn’t comment beyond that due to the BCA taking over the investigation.

“Pursuant to our policies, those officers have been placed on administrative leave,” Zibolski said. “All of our known protocols have been followed. We will continue to await the prosecutor’s decision on this side of the river [in Moorhead] and go from there.”

The Fargo Police Department has released the identities of officers who are involved in critical incidents shortly after the shootings. Zibolski said his department will follow Minnesota BCA protocol in releasing information, including publicly identifying the officers who fired their guns.

“We anticipate releasing more information after our preliminary investigation wraps up in the coming days,” BCA spokesman Michael Ernster said after the press conference. “That typically includes the names of the deceased individuals and officers.”

During the response, officers were involved in a “critical incident,” a news release said, a term defined by Minnesota law as “an event that results in acute or cumulative psychological stress or trauma to an emergency service provider.”

“Critical incident includes but is not limited to any encounter which may result in the death of or serious injury to another person such as fatal motor vehicle accidents, child abuse investigations, death investigations and large scale man-made or natural disasters,” according to Minnesota law.

Law enforcement has also used the term to describe shootings involving officers, whether the officer is shot or the officer shoots another person. Helmick said “critical incident” is a wide-ranging term that can be used for different incidents. The term may be used when police don’t have details on what happened, he said.

“It’s really looking at all the things that law enforcement have to deal with and trying to classify them,” he said. “When we hear that, it usually means something really significant has happened.”

Helmick thanked the public and media for being patient in waiting for information. Authorities wanted to verify facts that could be released without compromising the investigation, he said. Transparency surrounding critical incidents is a priority, he said.

“We wanted to make sure we had all of our details released before we called this press conference,” Helmick said. “However, all of us standing up here today really understand that providing accurate and timely information to the public and the media is really important.”

Clay County Sheriff Mark Empting and Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner also were at the press conference, since officers from those two agencies also serve on the SWAT team.