Police say they're still prepared to handle critical incidents.

The effect on the Pueblo Police Department of having 10 employees on administrative leave after recent officer-involved shootings is minimal, department spokesperson Sgt. Franklyn Ortega said Tuesday.

Pueblo police shot and killed Daniel Gurule, 31, Saturday morning after an overnight standoff in the 1200 block of Bohmen Avenue. Eight Pueblo police officers — including six who are members of the police Special Weapons and Tactics team — were placed on administrative leave after the incident, which marked the third officer-involved shooting by the Pueblo Police Department this year, as well as the fourth officer-involved shooting to take place in Pueblo County in 2019.

As the Tenth Judicial District Critical Incident Team investigates Saturday’s incident, the eight officers involved in the shooting are on paid administrative leave, which is standard protocol.

As of April 25, the department had 207 sworn officers.

“The SWAT guys are pulled from different crews throughout the department. The impact even with all of those officers on leave is minimum,” Ortega said. “That has no effect on patrol operations or answering calls for service.”

Pueblo police have responded to two standoffs since Friday.

In the most recent incident, at 1 p.m. Monday, police were called to a report of gunfire at a home on the 800 block of East First Street. After allegedly firing a gun at his son, Benjamin Sandoval, 56, refused to exit his home, launching a standoff with police. Though a SWAT team was dispatched, Sandoval surrendered without incident, police said. Sandoval was arrested and taken to Pueblo County jail on charges of attempted second-degree murder, violation of a restraining order, menacing and domestic violence.

Ortega said there are enough SWAT members to handle other incidents like the one Monday.

“It gets spread out. We utilize SWAT guys who are already on patrol. They just transition into the SWAT team role in addition with regular patrol guys,” Ortega said.

He said SWAT is split into two teams, and the number of SWAT members at an incident would depend on the incident itself.

“It varies. There is a different number or ideal depending on the circumstances of what you are trying to do,” Ortega said.

He said a search warrant at a large building would need more members — and if it’s a report of a barricaded person, the SWAT team works in coordination with patrol officers.

Two other officers were placed on leave stemming from an incident on the 2000 block of Acero Avenue on April 9.

A 28-year-old parolee, Michael Hensley, was fatally shot by Pueblo police officers at an apartment complex in southern Pueblo after officers attempted to contact him after observing him acting in a “suspicious manner.” When the officers tried to stop and question Hensley, he reportedly took off running. The officers gave chase, but Hensley then stopped and allegedly opened fire with a pistol. Hensley was killed when officers returned fire.

The police department also expects to use overtime pay in a high-demand situation, and it could call the Pueblo County Sheriff's Office SWAT team to emergencies, Ortega said.

amestas@chieftain.com

Twitter: @mestas3517