Fatal officer involved shooting Cleveland

Jeffrey Findlay, 30, was shot dead during an altercation with Cleveland police.

(Cliff Pinckard, cleveland.com)

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A 30-year-old man who hunted his ex-girlfriend with a loaded gun Sunday died after he was shot by two Cleveland police officers, officials said.

Jeffrey Findlay, 30, was shot several times in the backyard of a West Side home after refusing to drop his gun after multiple commands from the officers, according to police.

City officials have not released the names of the two officers who fired the shots.

The death marks the first deadly police-involved shooting since the city entered an agreement with the U.S. Justice Department to reform the police department.

The shooting happened about 9 p.m. in the 3800 block of Mapledale Avenue, which is just south of Interstate 71 between Fulton and Pearl roads in the city's Brooklyn Centre neighborhood.

A 25-year-old woman recently ended a relationship with Findlay, police said. He drove to her home and a neighbor saw him pull into the driveway, according to police.

The neighbor tried to talk Findlay into leaving, but he refused and went inside the woman's home, according to police. The woman told Findlay to leave and he pulled out a gun, according to police records.

The neighbor told police he looked through a window and saw Findlay point a gun at the woman, police said. He called 911 and told police dispatchers that he could see a red dot on the woman's chest from Findlay's gun-mounted laser, according to police.

The woman ran from the house, police said. She and the neighbor hopped a fence and hid behind a garage, according to police.

Findlay came out of the house with the gun and started searching for the woman while she and the neighbor watched from their hiding spot. The two directed police to where Findlay was searching in the backyard, according to police records.

Officers found Findlay with the gun near the woman, according to police.

Officers yelled at Findlay several times to drop his gun, according to police. The woman also tried to tell Findlay to drop the weapon, according to police.

The officers fired, and several shots struck Findlay. EMS took him to MetroHealth where he was pronounced dead. No one else was hurt in the encounter.

The 25-year-old woman had called police April 1 after Findlay went to the home and initially refused to leave. She called back seven minutes later after he left without incident, according to police reports.

It's the first fatal officer-involved shooting in Cleveland since the March 19, 2015 shooting that killed 18-year-old Brandon Jones.

Jones, who was unarmed, broke into Parkwood Grocery store by prying back the metal cage with a crow bar and kicking in the front door, officials said. Jones and officer Alan Buford fought and Buford fired a single, fatal shot.

Buford was later charged with negligent homicide in Jones' death. Buford pleaded not guilty to the charge and the case is still pending in Cleveland Municipal Court.

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