Female Suspect Dies After San Francisco Police Shooting In Bayview
RELATED: Police Chief Greg Suhr Resigns
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- A female suspect was fatally shot by San Francisco police in the city's Bayview District Thursday morning, SFPD Chief Greg Suhr confirmed.
The shooting occurred around 10 a.m. in the area of Shafter Avenue and Elmira Street, police spokesman Officer Albie Esparza said.
Esparza did not immediately release more information about what led to the shooting.
The public is being asked to avoid the area as the investigation continues.
The San Francisco Medical Examiner's van arrived on the scene at around 11:15 a.m.
SFPD Chief Greg Suhr spoke when police updated the media on the incident. He said the incident began at about 9:45 a.m. Thursday morning on Elmira Street just below Charter Road when uniformed officers from the Bayview Station spotted a stolen vehicle.
The officers approached the car and tried to engage the suspect, an African-American female, who attempted to drive off.
The suspect crashed the car nearby, according to Suhr.
A witness told police the woman was moving the car back and forth while they tried to pull her out. Suhr said it was not yet clear if she was armed or threatening officers.
One of the officers, a sergeant, fired a single shot at the suspect, striking her. Officers immediately removed the suspect and administered CPR.
The suspect was taken to San Francisco General Hospital, where Suhr said the 27-year-old female died of her injuries.
Suhr has been under fire for months over a string of officer-involved shootings in San Francisco dating back to the March 2014 incident that left Alex Nieto dead after a fatal encounter with police at a Bernal Heights park.
At least one man KPIX spoke to in the neighborhood said he supports the police.
"You know what? Unless we are the policeman's shoes, we will never know what happened, said Fred Ochoa, who owns a nearby business. It's a stressful job and we need 'em. And yeah, it's unfortunate that happened, but they are in a tough position sometimes, you know?"
Others don't see it that way. A number of activist groups have accused SFPD of having a trigger-happy.
The shooting scene is in the same neighborhood of the incident that claimed the life of Mario Woods in December of last year. That fatal shooting ignited a firestorm of discontent, something Chief Suhr briefly addressed during the press briefing.
"This is exactly the thing that we are trying with all of our reforms and everything else to avoid, said Suhr. We want no contact ever, if it can be helped, to lead to OIS let alone a fatal OIS."
Suhr told reporters that witnesses were being interviewed regarding the shooting, but officers had not yet been interviewed.
He also asked anyone who might have photos or video of the incident to come forward and provide the evidence to aid in the investigation.
