GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) - A Mesa County deputy sheriff has been cleared after he shot a parolee who repeatedly pointed an assault rifle at an armored law enforcement vehicle.
District Attorney Pete Hautzinger said Monday the December shooting was justified when an hours-long standoff on East Orchard Mesa ended with a flurry of gunfire from sheriff’s deputy Blake McClellan, killing 49-year-old Lawrence Sanchez.
According to the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel (https://tinyurl.com/qat28xh ), an autopsy showed Sanchez had a blood-alcohol level nearly three times Colorado’s standard for driving under the influence.
Authorities say Sanchez was wanted for escaping from a Pueblo halfway house.
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Information from: The Daily Sentinel, https://www.gjsentinel.com
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