Dayton Police held a media briefing Wednesday to provide details on Tuesday night’s fatal officer-involved shooting downtown.
According to Police Chief Kamran Afzal, the incident occurred just before 9:30 p.m. when officers stopped 44-year-old Reginald Thomas on a bicycle at the intersection of Second and St. Clair streets near the Dayton Metro Library. The traffic stop was reportedly for Thomas not having a front light on his bike.
Body camera footage released during the briefing shows an officer approaching Thomas and asking if he had a weapon. Thomas initially said he did not, but he began to resist during a pat-down and ran from the officers. As the officer chased him south on St. Clair Street, Thomas is seen reaching for a handgun near Third Street.
The video shows Thomas dropping the firearm but then grabbing it again during a struggle with the officer. A second officer discharged their weapon during the confrontation. Thomas was provided aid at the scene and transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Both officers were unharmed.
Chief Afzal stated that legal guidance confirmed officers would have had the authority to discharge their weapons when Thomas initially reached for the gun, but they chose not to.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office is leading the criminal investigation, which will be presented to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, followed by an administrative review by Dayton Police’s Professional Standards Bureau.
Afzal emphasized that the incident does not reflect the safety of downtown Dayton, calling the area “very safe.” The shooting comes a day after the Downtown Dayton Security Working Group met with city leaders, including U.S. Rep. Mike Turner and Dayton Mayor Shenise Turner-Sloss, to discuss security recommendations for the city.
