San Jose Police Officer Killed; Suspect Dead

March 25, 2015
Veteran Officer Michael Johnson was killed Tuesday after being fired upon without warning.

The suicidal man accused of shooting a San Jose police officer to death as the officer was rushing to help him was found dead at his apartment early Wednesday from at least one gunshot wound, police said.

Scott Dunham, 57, was found dead on the balcony of his apartment at 2664 Senter Road about 3:20 a.m.

The Santa Clara County medical examiner will determine whether he was killed by police gunfire or if he took his own life, authorities said.

Police Chief Larry Esquivel said there had no additional reports of gunfire after the initial gunbattle between police and Dunham Tuesday night.

"It's a good possibility he was dead the whole time," Esquivel said. "There was no contact, or any dialogue or communication with any of our officers after that."

Police said Dunham opened fire, apparently from a high-powered rifle, and killed Officer Michael Johnson as the 14-year veteran responded to a call from a relative asking police to check on the welfare of the suspect.

Condolences pouring into the San Jose Police Department from grieving citizens, leaders and law enforcement officers included messages from Gov. Brown and Attorney General Kamala Harris.

"Anne and I extend our deepest condolences to Officer Johnson's family, friends and fellow officers," Brown wrote. "Officer Johnson will be remembered for his courage and dedicated service and we join the entire San Jose community in mourning this tragic loss."

The shooting happened at 7:08 p.m. Tuesday, around 20 minutes after officers were called to investigate reports that Dunham was intoxicated, had a gun to his head at an apartment on the 2600 block of Senter Road, near Umbarger Road, and was threatening to commit suicide.

Police were asked to do a welfare check on Dunham, who reportedly threatened his wife and said he would kill her if "she didn't leave," the police dispatcher told officers responding to the call. The woman left the apartment and called one of her children, who called police.

Officers were taking up positions around the apartment when the shooting erupted.

The man shot Johnson while apparently standing on his balcony, police said. Other officers then pulled their weapons and returned fire.

"I heard a boom boom, and I looked at my grandkids and said that sounded like gunfire," said Billy Lewis, 61, a neighbor of Dunham. "My grandchild said that was a gun. We got on the floor and took cover."

"Officer down! Officer down!" one officer said on the police radio.

"We have multiple shots being fired," another officer reported.

Once things quieted down, Lewis looked outside and saw two officers with their guns drawn toward Dunham's unit. Lewis said he took his grandkids upstairs in his condo and called the police, who told him about the shooting and told him to stay inside.

"It's just heartbreaking that it was my neighbor and heartbreaking that we lost one of our officers in the line of duty," he said.

Johnson, who was married, died at the scene. He served as a field training officer but wasn't with a rookie at the time, police said.

The last San Jose officer to be killed in the line of duty was Jeffrey Fontana, who was shot and killed in 2001 by a man who was later sentenced to life in prison. Johnson was in the same academy class as Fontana.

Esquivel said he recognized the fact that graduates of that class would likely be even more affected by the tragedy.

In a statement, the San Jose Police Officers Association blasted Dunham as a "coward" and said Johnson was "tragically struck down in the prime of his life protecting and serving the residents of San Jose."

Officer Albert Morales, a department spokesman, struggled to contain his emotion as he addressed the media early Wednesday.

"The chief is obviously really broken up right now," Morales said. "He just addressed all the officers that were out here, including those that assisted. Very, very difficult thing to do when you are head of an organization and you have to tell your officers to continue to do a good job and go out there and protect the citizens of the city."

Morales said officers were "obviously crying, grieving. They will do so for some quite some time. Our hearts, our prayers go out to the family of Michael, our brother."

Henry K. Lee, Hamed Aleaziz and Kevin Fagan are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] [email protected]. Twitter: @henryklee @haleaziz @KevinChron

Copyright 2015 - San Francisco Chronicle

Tribune News Service

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