Xerxes Wilson

The News Journal

A Wilmington police officer fatally shot a man in the city's Trolley Square neighborhood Monday night, police said.

Police were called to the 1700 block of W. 13th St. shortly after 6 p.m. Monday for a report of a "distraught" and potentially armed man, according to an agency news release.

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Arriving officers encountered the man, who was armed with a handgun, and fatally shot him, police said. No other details of the altercation were included in the department's news release circulated Monday night. Department officials did not return phone calls Monday night.

The release said an investigation is being conducted by Wilmington Police and the Delaware Department of Justice.

An hour after the incident, neighbors were back inside and only a few police moved in and out of a home where the shooting occurred. It is two blocks from the nearby Acme Grocer and Trolley Square restaurants. Shootings of any type are a rare occurrence for that part of the city.

"It's normally quiet," said one woman who was ducking under police tape to return home with a small child and pizzas in tow.

The most recent officer-involved, fatal shooting by Wilmington Police took place in Sept. 2015 when four officers fatally shot Jeremy "Bam" McDole, who was in a wheelchair. The shooting, which was captured on cellphone video, drew a strong reaction from the community with many calling for the firing of the officers as well as the resignation of the former mayor and current chief of police.

Last month, the city agreed to pay $1.5 million to the McDole family. In addition to the financial award, the agreement states that Wilmington police will consider a comprehensive use of force policy that will outline when force is appropriate and train officers in de-escalation procedures.

The settlement was not an admission of guilt for the officers involved or city officials who argued the shooting was justified. A Department of Justice investigation said there was not sufficient justification to charge the officers involved in that shooting.

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Before Monday, the most recent officer shooting by Wilmington police happened when a 17-year-old Taje Beasley pointed a replica handgun at an officer in April.

Officers chased the teen to the 400 block of W. Third St., where he tripped and fell to the ground. The teen then got up, pulled a black, replica gun from his waistband and pointed it at the police before Cpl. Darriel Tynes shot the teen in the knee.

Earlier this month, the Delaware Attorney General's Office concluded Tynes did not commit a crime when he shot Beasley, who was charged with aggravating menacing and fleeing police.

Contact Xerxes Wilson at (302) 324-2787 or xwilson@delawareonline.com. Follow @Ber_Xerxes on Twitter.