Spokane7
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November 17, 2010 in City
Police officers who shot gunman identified
From upper left, Spokane police Officers Dan Cole, Bill Hager, Kyle Heuett, Mike McNab, Bruce Palmer and Doug Strosahl.
(Full-size photo)
Six police officers fired a total of 26 shots at a man who refused to drop a shotgun near a busy Spokane intersection last week, investigators said Wednesday.
Ethan A. Corporon, 29, died of two gunshots on the lawn of a Spokane Tribe of Indians building on West Indiana Avenue, which was riddled with bullet holes from police gunfire.
The Spokane Police officers who fired at Corporon were identified Wednesday as Dan Cole, Bill Hager, Bruce Palmer, Doug Strosahl, Kyle Heuett and Mike McNab.
The six men, who have a combined 86 years of police experience in Spokane, were part of “a large contingent of officers” who responded to reports of a shotgun-wielding man Friday at 1402 W. Buckeye Ave.
Witnesses at the scene of the shooting said Corporon fired several shots at police and into the air.
But Spokane County sheriff’s Sgt. Dave Reagan said Wednesday that the officers began shooting at Corporon after he refused to drop his shotgun and appeared to be about to run into Shari’s restaurant.
It was unclear if investigators have corroborated witness accounts of Corporon firing at officers. Regan declined to discuss further details Wednesday.
Police caught up with Corporon’s Chevrolet pickup at Monroe and Indiana after he drove away from the Buckeye Avenue home, where neighbors said he’d threatened his father with a shotgun.
Corporon abandoned the truck in the left-hand lane of southbound Monroe in front of Shari’s, then ran west through the restaurant parking lot with the shotgun before dying of his gunshot wounds near the intersection of Madison and Indiana.
Police found marijuana grow operations at the Buckeye Avenue home and at Corporon’s home at 1211 E. 14th Ave.
Corporon is a convicted felon with a long history of suicide attempts and mental illness, including psychosis and bipolarity.
In 2008, a psychiatrist described him as “volatile and explosive” and said he was likely to reoffend.
It’s unclear when he last sought mental health treatment. Though the report from an Eastern State Hospital doctor, included in Corporon’s criminal file in Benton County Superior Court, said he’d been treated there at least six times, staff this week said privacy laws prohibit them from confirming if he’s even been there.
The sheriff’s office is investigating Corporon’s fatal shooting with detectives from the Washington State Patrol and Spokane Police Department.
The police officers involved in the shooting remain on leave.
Cole was hired by the Spokane Police Department in March 1986; Hager in January 1991; Palmer in February 1997; Strosahl in February 1998; Heuett in January 2001; and McNab in August 2001.
McNab, a corporal, is a member of the Inland Northwest’s chapter of Honor Flight, which flies World War II veterans to Washington, D.C., for a tour of memorials.
Stroshal has managed the Explorer Program and was the training coordinator for the Reserve Program. He earned the department’s “top gun” award in 1998, according to news archives.
Cole earned a life-saving award in March 2000 for pulling a fleeing handcuffed burglary suspect from the Spokane River.
Human trafficking suspects released 
Albert on November 17 at 4:08 p.m.
“The six officers fired a total of 26 shots at Ethan A. Corporon, 29, who the Medical Examiner’s Office died of two gunshot wounds.” Oops.
MrDavis on November 17 at 4:13 p.m.
These young men are in need of a little more time at the range, and the use of high capacity semi-automatics by the SPD might need to be reconsidered.
ben4guns on November 17 at 4:18 p.m.
I would like to see you guys try to hit a moving target with a hand gun under stress and that is shooting back at you. You guys are ignorant.
cpd805 on November 17 at 5:32 p.m.
Let me quote from a New York Times article on the accuracy of marksmanship in police shootings:
“In life-or-death situations that play out in lightning speed — such precision marksmanship is unrealistic.”
“Bad marksmanship? Police officials and law enforcement experts say no, contending that the number of misses underscores the tense and unpredictable nature of these situations.”
“As long as the handgun is the main tool for the police officers to use, you are going to have misses.”
“You take Olympic shooters, and they practice all the time, and they can hit a fly off a cow’s nose from 100 yards……But if you put a gun in that cow’s hand, you will get a different reaction from the Olympic shooter.”
Couple this with a MOVING target, and it only gets worse.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/09/weekinreview/09baker.html?pagewanted=1
reservedparking on November 17 at 6:00 p.m.
He DIED of 2 gunshot wounds. The other 24 were not life-threatening.
Shylock13 on November 17 at 6:00 p.m.
Something seems wrong if only 2 of 26 shots even hit the man. A moving target, sure, somewhat hard to hit…but six officers with 26 shots only could hit him twice?? Maybe they should learn where to aim—at the gut!
BitofBacon on November 17 at 6:27 p.m.
I think we should take all you armchair cops out to the range, give you a simunitions weapon, have someone start firing their weapon at you and see how well you do. Yeah, yeah, yeah-you don’t have the training, you don’t get paid to do that, blah,blah blah. I, for one, are glad they are out there. Good job to all the officers!!
ErnieWuthrich on November 17 at 6:33 p.m.
The actions of these officers were courageous! The criminal actions of Ethan Corporon placed the officers and the citizens of our community in grave danger. I’m thankful that the thought of being brutally scrutinized by the news media didn’t keep any of them from acting quickly to eliminate the threat. Thank you Dan Cole, Bill Hager, Bruce Palmer, Doug Strosahl, Kyle Heuett and Mike McNab for your heroic actions!
Sincerely,
Ernie Wuthrich
Spokane Police Guild President
qwerty12 on November 17 at 6:37 p.m.
The shooting was definitely justified and appropriate use of force and being shot at is without a question stressful (been there, done that…Desert Storm) but 26 stray shots from 6 weapons in trained hands in an urban setting is not good at all!!! We are lucky there were no innocent bystander injuries or fatalities. Training, training and more training!!! Stationary shooting at the range at a fixed distance is not it…tactical training!!!
Shylock13 on November 17 at 8:04 p.m.
I agree with qwerty12. Certainly the shooting was justified. And certainly the officers were fortunate that no one was hit by their errant shots!
eagleproducer on November 17 at 8:14 p.m.
Ernie: Got any money leftover for another billboard?
Albert on November 17 at 9:04 p.m.
We apply a number of bags of Ernie to our compost pile throughout the winter to keep the compost cooking. You know when the bags of Ernie are doing their job…the entire pile smokes with perking benefits.
ErnieWuthrich on November 17 at 9:48 p.m.
As long as you are focusing your angry remarks on me you are leaving someone else alone.
lewis8457 on November 17 at 11:16 p.m.
oh Ernie actually talks to the pppppeople? Oh mighty one what words of truth do you have for us simply folks? That your 100 grand a year members can’t hit the side a barn.
KREM2 reported they counted 29 shots that hit the school. So 31 shots were fired. Not that it matters since it is apparent your guys simply sprayed the area with bullets, hoping to hit something.
I think it is unacceptable to have 6 officers firing so may shots with citizens around. And Ernie we don’t care what you think. You and your crazy alcohol induced members think it was OK for Jay Olson to shoot a guy in the head and leave him for dead, and it was OK for Karl Thompson to beat Otto Zehm to death with his night stick. No Ernie no one cares what you think because we know they are nothing but lies.
You and your union are a cancer in Spokane that the citizens would cut out and flush down the toilet if they could.
lewis8457 on November 17 at 11:21 p.m.
“The criminal actions of Ethan Corporon placed the officers and the citizens of our community in grave danger”.
6 cops spraying a area with 31 bullets is a lot of danger to the community too! Not that Ernie really cares.
Scoutster on November 17 at 11:25 p.m.
Hey, Ernie, since you ventured out….
Can you explain to this lay person why officers should not be drug-tested after a critical incident, in particular a shooting?
I would sincerely like to know the rationale behind that.
spokanecougar on November 18 at 12:07 a.m.
How come the Spokane Police don’t have non-lethal forms of stopping people? It seems that by how many times they are shooting and killing people they would at least try and get some to save some bad press.
BitofBacon on November 18 at 7:02 a.m.
Spokanecougar-there has been quite a bit in the press lately about not bringing a knife to a gunfight. You don’t match lethal, shotgun, with non-lethal. What part of that don’t you get?
spokanecougar on November 18 at 9:01 a.m.
Bacon - are you kidding? So it’s ok for other bigger cities to use these types of methods, but Spokane its not ok, they want to stick to the old west style shootouts.
Your an idiot if you think they should be opening fire to kill people even if that person has a gun. This is what we are paying our taxes for and what these officers should be trained for. Not be trained them to shot someone 26 times and only hit them twice. I encourage you to take a look and see all the different types of non-lethal weapons available to our police officers in this world - there are so many things out there nowadays that they can use while still keeping a safe distance from them person with a gun and not kill him at the same time.
Get out of your old west ways, its 2010 we have technology and other things available were this kind of crap does not need to happen anymore.
BitofBacon on November 18 at 9:18 a.m.
OK Spokane Cougar, let’s say I’m firing at you with a shotgun. You can use a taser, pepper spray and a baton, beanbags. You will wind up dead, guaranteed. I’m sorry, if you think that matching fire with fire is uncivilized or idiocy, that’s pretty asinine. If I was one of the officers, I’m bringing a lethal weapon if that’s what I’m facing. This person could have killed others, too. I’m proud of what the officers did and I’m glad they got to go home at the end of the day.
spokanecougar on November 18 at 10:29 a.m.
Bacon, thats sad you live in this old west way of thinking like most of the Spokane Police and Sheriffs departments. I guess you failed to read the part that it was the Spokane police officers who actually caused more damage than this person. It was also a Spokane Police officers shoot that went through a kitchen window. Yes, the guy (who I actually knew) could have harmed and hurt someone, obviously, and I am not arguing that, I am saying our Police should be better trained and have better non-lethal forms of weapons, which are available and in use in other cities all over the world, so they are not killing everyone they encounter.
Also, there are other things police can use besides tasers, pepper spray and bean bags and still keep a safe distance from the person shooting. Again, take a few minutes to search the internet - you might be amazed what you find on there.
BitofBacon on November 18 at 10:43 a.m.
Coug,
I live in the real world, not some fantasyland where everyone walks away singing kumbaya. Don’t forget who started this whole incident. It wasn’t the cops, they didn’t go on a shooting rampage because they didn’t have anything else to do that day.
Ron_the_Cop on November 18 at 10:58 a.m.
Welcome to the peanut gallery Det. Wuthrich:-)
I have told Sheriff Knezovich several times before in emails that their PIOs should be active in these S-R discussion threads to quickly dispel wide speculation/rumors in these OIS by our learned experts that post here.
I see my comments are well read by the SCSO and SPD brass. I just got my PDR of the emails that KREM obtained that were the basis of their “Cage Fight” report that contained copies of these discussion threads.
http://www.krem.com/news/local/Surveillance-camera-catches-the-sounds-of-officer-involved-shooting-108254159.html
Det. Wuthrich I’m glad you’re taking the time to post here. I would strongly advise for the Guild’s sakes, you don’t retreat to the “them - us” mentality. This does no one any good. After all the “police are us and we are the police.” The police must have the trust of its community it serves. The S-R so far as spun your legitimate complaints with SPD brass against you.
I have said many times before there are many fine men and women who serve honorably day in and day out at SPD. What is lacking is effective police leadership. The Guild does its members a disservice when it retreats into a bunker mentality. The Guild would do well to gain/cultivate the support of the community to bring about the leadership change that is necessary.
I agree with you that Chief Kirkpatrick and Asst. Chief Nicks should have been fired by Mayor Verner a long time ago for a number of serious reasons. Former Sheriff Bamonte and I have filed two separate complaints with OPO Tim Burns that are still in investigation by the SPD IA Unit. There may be a third coming re the Creach OIS investigation re the “Cage Fight” and handing off an incomplete OIS report to County Prosecutor Tucker for his criminal review.
Read these two reports by Larry Shook:
America’s Most Patient Cop
ttp://larryshook.com/2010/10/29/americas-most-patient-cop/
America’s Most Dangerous Cop
http://larryshook.com/2010/05/12/america%E2%80%99s-most-dangerous-cop/
I’ve read the 733 page report and the subsequent supplement report by Det. Hamond. As I’ve said before I’m doing a report/analysis on Creach OIS investigation as it was handed off to Steve Tucker that I will provide in confidence to WSP Sgt. Wade and Sheriff Knezovich. In my professional opinion this OIS report was lacking/incomplete in many areas.
My interests here are as a citizen/taxpayer attempting to minimize the potential civil loss to taxpayers because of an incomplete work product. OIS investigations must be A+ level work because of the criminal, internal affairs, and civil ramifications/issues. I will hold my elected/appointed officials responsible when they fail to do the duty that they are sworn.
As for this current OIS it appears that the officers were interviewed shortly after this incident. I don’t know if the 72 hour rule was waived/modified as Sheriff Knezovich has done for his deputies in the critical incident protocol agreement with WSP, SCSO and SPD. This will be an important issue in the Creach OIS.
I will withhold comment on the number of rounds fired and their accuracy at this point until the facts are known. It would be safe to assume using semi-auto weapons that officers are going to fire in three shot volleys. There may be an issue of the number of officers firing, the accuracy of the rounds fired and the background behind the suspect.
HOWEVER - THIS WAS AN ARMED SUSPECT with apparently a shotgun. This was an active shooter event. This was a highly and rapidly evolving event where the use of less than lethal rounds/devices would be problematic. This suspect was on foot running and the likelihood of him taking hostages or barricading in a nearby residence were great. Lethal force based on these circumstance was justified. I’m not willing to second guess the officers’ actions at this point without further information.
[Continued]
Ron_the_Cop on November 18 at 10:58 a.m.
[Continued from above]
As I’ve said before we lost six officers to gunfire at my agency during my thirty-year career. We just lost another last week:
http://www.rpdremembers.org/Site/RPD_in_the_News/Entries/2010/11/1_November_2010.html
The larger societal/community issue here is that the police are ill-equipped to deal with the dumping of the mentally ill on the street without resources. The withholding of treatment because they have substance abuse issues is a Catch-22 excuse. Substance abuse and the mentally ill go hand in hand.
This tragedy has it roots in governmental decisions made long before this tragedy occurred that will affect these officers emotionally for a long time to come. Folks whether you believe it or not, officers are human and these events take their toll on their personal lives.
Det. Ron Wright (Retired)
Two-term president Riverside Police Officers’ Assn.
Riverside, CA (Now residing in Spokane)
GaryP on November 18 at 12:12 p.m.
LLLLLewis, you are an iiiiiidiot. I’m tired of telling you about the harmful effects of drinking Lime Away. Get some fresh air and learn some facts before you continue talking out your bbbbutt
GaryP on November 18 at 12:18 p.m.
Union president Ernie, you are dumbing yourself down by posting on any of the spokesman blogs. The regulars on here are morons(maybe even me too). They have no concept of combat or police situations. Most still prob live with their parents or are on some form of welfare. Trying to explain what seems obvious to these people won’t work. Go to the other media sites where people have a brain.
Scoutster on November 18 at 12:38 p.m.
GaryP..
Where are those sites? I’ve tried to raise the bar on this one, and I’ve played around on KREM until the ads drove me away.
Is there a place for intelligent discussion without the name calling, sarcasm, pettiness and diatribes? I’d love to find it.
Ernie…In the mean time, I respectfully disagree with GaryP…I wouldn’t worry about making the Police Guild look worse.
Ron_the_Cop on November 18 at 1:46 p.m.
Sorry one of my links is broken above. This should work.
America’s Most Patient Cop
http://larryshook.com/2010/10/29/americas-most-patient-cop/
eagleproducer on November 18 at 1:50 p.m.
garyp: I’m not sure what you stated is possible. Ernie being “dumbed down?” That’s like saying make ice colder.
Get it?
misjustice on November 18 at 1:52 p.m.
In fact, Ernie, you should post more often; on every thread that involves homicide by cop.
I know, at the rate that homicide by cop is happening in our fair city/region, it could keep you very busy and possibly take you away from your primary responsibility of, well whatever it is that you do. But I, for one, would love to read your pearls of wisdom.
eagleproducer on November 18 at 3:30 p.m.
Judging from the photo lineup, efforts to diversify the SPD sure seem to be working!