Spokane7
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October 27, 2010 in City
Man killed by deputy had been suicidal
Report portrays Dodd as mentally unstable
A man shot and killed by a Spokane County sheriff’s deputy on Sunday underwent a mental evaluation after trying to commit suicide last summer.
A police report obtained Tuesday said Quentin Donald Dodd, 50, told officers “he was upset with his life and didn’t want to live anymore” when he walked down to the train tracks at Perry Street and Indiana Avenue in Spokane Valley in July.
The 3-month-old report portrays the latest target of police gunfire to be a mentally unstable man who told police he’d considered fighting with the arresting officer “because he wanted to die.”
Police haven’t said if they believe Dodd’s death Sunday night was what’s commonly referred to as “suicide by cop.”
The Spokane Police Department, which is leading a multi-agency investigation into the shootings, expects to release more information on Thursday, including the deputy’s identity.
Dodd’s brother, Walter Dodd, said the report is untrue and said his brother was not mentally unstable. He said his family has hired a lawyer.
Dodd was living at Restoration Ministries, a home for people recovering from problems such as drugs and alcohol addiction, when residents called police about 7:30 p.m. Dodd was gone when deputies arrived at the duplex at 507 N. Sommer Road.
A deputy found him holding an obsidian knife in the middle of Progress Road, about a block from the faith-based halfway house. The deputy requested assistance, then at some point opened fire. Dodd was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Obsidian knives are handcrafted from volcanic rock and typically mounted onto wild game antlers.
Dodd had lived at the home about 2 1/2 months after completing a drug rehabilitation program in Spokane Valley, family said.
Homeowner Melinda Seymour said Dodd was angry and threatening residents with the weapon before deputies arrived.
It’s unclear where Dodd was living when police responded to the train tracks near Mission Park about 6:40 p.m. on July 9.
A train conductor had reported a shirtless man lying in the train tracks “screaming at the train to hit him,” according to the report. The conductor was able to stop the train and Dodd was spotted walking toward Mission Park.
He told officers he was diabetic, had heart problems and hadn’t had anything to eat or drink in 24 hours when he tried to get killed by a train, police said.
“Officer (Ron) Voeller said (Dodd) had initially wanted to fight him because he wanted to die,” according to the report. “(Dodd) mentioned that ‘some people’ wanted to kill him, and he has nothing more to live for. He wouldn’t go into any further detail on the people he was talking about.”
Dodd was taken to Providence Scared Heart Medical Center for a mental evaluation.
Human trafficking suspects released 
JBlim on October 27 at 7:02 a.m.
Well, it’s good to know the Spokane Police Department has a suicide help line . . .
lewis8457 on October 27 at 7:39 a.m.
hey they will come kill you some help.
So what is this article supposed to mean SR? That if a person is unstable they are not worth living? If i still had my paid subscription I would cancel it.
de3 on October 27 at 8:44 a.m.
Still wanting to know what this means: “A police report obtained Tuesday”.
Was this requested by the media or was it handed out, unsolicited by the police? (All the local TV stations have the report too.)
Which “police” agency produced the report?
bdr on October 27 at 9:24 a.m.
Kxly reported his family seven brothers and four sisters and mom huddled in Hillyard. and they dont know how to bury this poor sick fellow!
12 people? cant figure out how to come up with 600 bucks for cremation?
no wonder why he wanted out of life! HOLY CRAP
that’s pocket change to a teen.
andjusticeforall on October 27 at 10:36 a.m.
“Officer (Ron) Voeller said (Dodd) had initially wanted to fight him because he wanted to die,” according to the report.
Now did the cop state this before of after he found out the man was
suicidal…makes a big difference.
Ron was probably just another trigger happy cop & once he heard
Dodd was suicidal he found his way out
Coffee on October 27 at 2:17 p.m.
Rule of thumb never call the police for a domestic problem, call the department and report a possible stroke or drug inter action. You will get more people without guns, better respected and willing to help.
Coffee on October 27 at 2:18 p.m.
Fire department
disgusted on October 31 at 2:07 p.m.
It just doesn’t matter what the circumstances surrounding this shooting was 20ft, 8ft, 4ft, shoot me, shoot me it doesn’t matter it’s just publicity smoke to win public favor of a unjustifiable homicide in hopes to build a biased jury
I don’t think jurors this time are going to be convinced this person could possibly be a threat to anyone with his little killer assault rock
Fact is TWO of the valleys finest officers 200lb each (or about) had to shoot to kill a 100lb 50 year old in poor health with a rock!
Nope this one does not look remotely justifiable at ALL unless
due to budget short falls the sheriff’s department can only afford deputies from Mayberry or the citizen himself had 60 round clips for the rock. If not one of the two then it’s just another lawless execution in the streets of Spokane
• This is actually a scary situation all our lives depends on weather or not if we are liked by the Spokane Taliban