Richmond police fatally shoot person while serving search warrant

RICHMOND — At least one Richmond police officer shot and fatally wounded a person during the service of a search warrant here Wednesday morning, authorities said.

The injured person, whose identity was not immediately available, died despite rescue efforts from officers, Richmond police spokesperson Sgt. Donald Patchin said by phone Wednesday afternoon.

The investigation had to do with illegal high-powered guns, according to authorities. It occurred in the 1200 block of Sanderling Island, according to authorities.

The shooting happened when a person pulled out a weapon at officers when they entered the home and refused to drop it, Patchin said.

It is the second Bay Area police shooting in as many days. On Tuesday morning, in nearby Vallejo, officers shot and injured a burglary suspect who allegedly rammed his vehicle into a police car.

Police have not said how many officers fired their duty weapons in Richmond, or why the person was shot. Nor have they revealed the nature of the search warrant.

Calls to the department’s public information officer were not immediately returned.

It is the city’s first police shooting since April 2020, when one Richmond officer and five Oakland police officers shot and killed a murder suspect during a lengthy police chase around the East Bay. Two people were shot and killed by Richmond officers in 2019.