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Witnesses recall gun in police shooting at Costco
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Shot by Las Vegas police
Erik Scott
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Shoppers on Monday haul their purchases to the parking lot of the Summerlin Costco, 801 S. Pavilion Center Drive, where 39-year-old Erik Scott was shot and killed by police on Saturday. A security camera, upper right, is positioned to capture events at the stores exit. K.M. CANNON/LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL » Buy this photo
Updated: Jul. 13, 2010 | 8:21 a.m.
Erik Scott, who was described by Las Vegas police as "kind of going berserk" before he was fatally shot by officers in front of a Costco store on Saturday, did not appear out of control to one witness who saw the man interacting with store employees.
In a news release issued Monday, police said Scott, 39, was "acting erratically" and "damaging merchandise" while inside the store in Summerlin. He also was seen with a pistol on him, police said. Police were called to the store about the incident, which ended with Scott's death. Shots were fired by three officers, including one who was involved in a fatal shooting in 2006.
But a witness the Review-Journal interviewed Monday, a 72-year-old man who spoke on the condition that his name not be used, said Scott did not appear to be doing anything nefarious.
Scott was crouched down with a backpack in front of him in a sporting goods aisle, the witness said. Scott had taken a large package of sport drink bottles off the shelf and placed it on the floor in front of him. He had torn open the package to get at the contents and was placing the bottles in and out of the backpack.
"It was like he was trying it out," the man said. "I think possibly he was trying to see if it would fit in his backpack."
A Costco employee confronted Scott in the aisle, and the witness said Scott's voice was "elevated." He couldn't hear what was being said. The witness did not see a gun on Scott.
But when the witness walked by Scott, he heard him say to the employee, "Well, I can do that in Texas."
"After we walked down the aisle, my wife said, 'That's a funny thing for him to say,' and I agreed," the witness said.
In retrospect, the 72-year-old man said he believed Scott's comment about Texas was a reference to being allowed to carry a concealed handgun.
When the couple rounded the corner of the aisle, they saw a second Costco employee who appeared to be talking on a Bluetooth headset while observing Scott and the other employee.
Roughly five minutes later, the man said, he heard an announcement on the store's intercom asking everyone to leave the building.
Scott was shot while following the crowd out of the store.
Several witnesses interviewed by the Review-Journal have said they did not see a gun and did not see Scott reach for a gun when police confronted him outside the store.
But the 72-year-old man, in addition to another witness reached Monday, said they did see the weapon and did see Scott reach for it.
Police have said that Scott drew a pistol and pointed it at officers after they ordered him to raise his hands and lie on the ground. Both witnesses gave their accounts to homicide investigators, they said.
The 72-year-old man heard police say, "Get on the ground. Get on the ground." He saw Scott facing the officers, who were between Scott and the store entrance.
The man said he saw Scott reach with his right hand and pull out what appeared to be a gun in a zippered holster. He recognized the holster, he said, because he has one like it. Officers then fired, and the man saw the gun fall out of Scott's hand. The witness did not see Scott point the gun at officers.
"I feel sorry for the guy, but he just made a dumb move," the 72-year-old man said.
The second witness, who also spoke on the condition that his name not be used, was standing near the entrance when he said he heard police shout, "Get down on the ground. Get down now."
He turned to see why police were yelling, he said, and saw Scott reaching for what appeared to be a pistol in his waistband. The witness said he recognized the butt of the gun and immediately turned toward his wife and covered her as they dove to the ground.
"He was definitely reaching for the gun," the man said.
The witness turned away before he could see whether Scott fully removed the weapon from his waistband and didn't see the shooting. He said it did not appear that Scott was trying to "quick-draw" the weapon on the officers.
He heard gunshots soon after. The witness said he has been struggling with how the incident unfolded.
"It's so totally bizarre to me" that the man would grab the weapon in front of the officers, the witness said.
He added that he doesn't believe the man deserved to die for his actions, as he has heard other people say. But he said he does believe the officers were justified in their response.
However, he disputes whether police should have confronted Scott in a dense crowd. Nobody else was injured during the incident.
The Costco store, at 801 S. Pavilion Center Circle, has video surveillance cameras. It wasn't clear whether the cameras captured the event. Calls to Costco's corporate spokesman were not returned Monday.
Clark County Sheriff Doug Gillespie said Monday that investigators have been trying to obtain the video: "We have not recovered any video at this point."
He said he couldn't comment on the case because it is under investigation and will be the subject of a Clark County coroner's inquest. A date for the inquest has not yet been scheduled.
Three officers have been placed on routine paid administrative leave pending the outcomes of the investigation and inquest. They are 38-year-old William Mosher, a five-year veteran of the department; 28-year-old Joshua Stark, a two-year veteran; and 23-year-old Thomas Mendiola, also a two-year veteran.
Saturday's shooting was not the first for Mosher, who in April 2006 was one of two officers who shot and killed a suspect in a car.
At a coroner's inquest, officers Mosher and John Jessie Wiggins testified they feared for Wiggins' life when they opened fire on Aaron Jones at the Sunset Breeze apartments in the southwest valley. Both officers fired after Jones, a suspect in a home burglary, backed up his car and hit Wiggins in an attempt to escape.
Police said Scott, a 1994 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point who earned a master's degree from North Carolina's Duke University, was carrying two guns. They said that he pointed one at officers and that a second one was found by medical personnel transporting Scott to University Medical Center.
Attorney Ross Goodman, who is representing the family, said he does not dispute that Scott was carrying a weapon. But he said he has received numerous calls and e-mails from witnesses who claim that they did not see Scott pull out a gun in front of officers.
Scott's girlfriend was present during the shooting. Friends said the two were buying items for when she was to move in with him. She has declined to comment through Goodman, who has described the family as "distraught" over what happened.
Scott has lived in Las Vegas for more than a decade, according to his friends. He was a sales representative for Boston Scientific, a medical devices manufacturer. He sold pacemakers for the company.
Contact reporter Lawrence Mower at lmower@ reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0440. Contact reporter Brian Haynes at bhaynes@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0281.
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(It's so Nevada)...Coming to a forum just for you.
The police once again think they are the only ones who can have a gun. I hope the NRA get involved with this. It's time to bring these Vegas cops back to reality. This force lives in a bubble of it's own. They will shoot you at will. This town and the system of law changed when John Moran Jr was elected to the office of Sheriff, and has gotten worst ever since.
@tbrownbag: I have a feeling that alot of those prior shootings will get a fresh look at some point in the near future....
OUTSIDER - I truly feel your pain. I HEED your message about Vegas locals not letting this one slide. I could not fathom stepping foot in COSTCO parking lot after the MURDER that was COMMITTED! COSTCO SHOULD BE BOYCOTTED, AND I WOULD BE HAPPY TO HOLD UP A SIGN IN THIS SWELTERING HEAT! I agree that it appears the Security Guard or whomever had a confrontation in the store with Erik, also had a SUPER EGO, and could not stand that a buff, good looking guy, with a woman on his arm was confronting him logically about a concealed weapons permit. What next? They send all their customers out the same exit where the BAD GUY, the same one who actually paid for his loot..was to be confronted by a few rookie cops with super egos themselves, let alone one who was just recently traumatized in another shooting. Have you noticed all the METRO presence in the area after last SAT? They have to save face I imagine at a time like this, and step up their game! Places like where we come from this kinda of utter travesties of JUSTICE simply to not happen. But, yes people like us end up in the arm pit of America. When the mission is complete, the truth will come out fully and completely I have no doubt. To his girlfriend, I hope she finds peace and to the Scott Family, how wonderful to have raised and shared time with a son such a he. That gaping hole will never be repaired, but I pray for your healing & your justice.
Again............. convene a federal grand jury on the habitual use of excessive force by Metro...... or just furnish them with .22's.
@maukflauk HAHA! Glitch.
Reading these comments is a tragedy in itself. Which of you were actually there? Which of you are trashing Erik Scott without justification? Which of you are trashing Metro without proof? I worry that the video will not be seen in it's entirety (either intentionally or due to a glitch), I worry that Metro might "justify" a bad shooting, I worry that Eriks family will never be whole again,I worry that an employee at Costco has to live with this outcome, but, mostly, I worry that so many of us will jump to conclusions about the situation without any proof either way. The 9-1-1 call should be heard, video should be shown. In the meantime, why are so many of you posting trash about an incident we really have no clear information on? This should not be a forum for personal attacks on Erik, Metro, or a poster. I am not for or against Metro or Erik, just against hiding the truth...against causing more pain for all of the people that were truly involved. 3 officers have to live with killing a man, a family has to live with the loss of Erik, an employee has to live with the question of whether his tale was "over-played" as is being stated, and a community has to once again search its soul for answers! What a true tragedy, made worse by callous postings on both sides...
He had a concealed weapons permit. Should have kept it concealed.
@Green Dragon- it probably happens all the time. Probably in every case. I am sure officers drew their weapons on a black kid with a gun. One officer probably said drop it while another one yelled put your hands up where I can see them. While listening to the second order..he was shot and killed. Probably to you that is justified because you don't look this kid and you don't live anywhere near that area. I don't recall reading your comment on that story. Does that sound possible to you? Or the rest of you too?
@ryanlions-
Yet several witnesses state they heard an officer say "drop it", and so far, Metro is not saying what the officers said. You are willing to absolutely deny the possibility that one of three different officers, including a 23 year-old, could not have possibly given conflicting or confusing orders and when the subject tried to comply with one of the orders that may have run counter to what another officer expected, it resulted in that officer firing his weapon, which most likey would have caused the other officers to discharge their weapons? Doesn't sound at all possible to you?
Sincity said: "Had Mr. Scott simply walked out of the store like he was asked, he may be alive today." ---- Sorry Sincity. Here's what we know. The second he complies and leaves the store, WALKS THRU THE DOORS, he is MURDERED BY METRO. He would have been better off if he would have hidden in COSTCO and forced a standoff with SWAT. Special Weapons and TACTICS. First of all, there would have been an ADULT in charge and TACTICS. A PLAN. Not a bunch of trigger happy murderous ROOKIE cops. IF GIVEN THE CHANCE, Mr. Scott would have gladly complied. As I've said before, METRO'S FUSE WAS LIT before they got there. Perhaps by the DISPATCHER. Who knows until we hear the tapes. I agree with your point about COSTCO asking him to leave. NO QUESTION. My problem is how COSTCO handled it. WHAT WAS THE TIME FRAME? 10 SECONDS? 2 HOURS? What was he expected to do? Does he abandon his task? Does he go thru checkout? Maybe if he would have VAPORIZED we wouldn't be discussing this. I bartended for years. Every once in a while I would have to cut someone off for acting a fool. The most common response? " AS SOON AS I FINISH MY BEER." That always worked for me. Trying to wrestle the beer out of their hand NEVER crossed my mind. INNOCENT PEOPLE GET HURT. So in REALITY, COSTCO cut him off. He was in the process of LEAVING. He got the message. The minute he crossed the threshold of the front door, where it was PERFECTLY LEGAL again to carry his guns... HE WAS MURDERED. I've carried for years. I've been asked more that once to check my gun at the front desk. NO PROBLEM. It's never upset me. It's part of carrying. To pretend for a moment that Erik Scott was DESTROYING COSTCO because he was asked to park his pistols, is absolutely ridiculous. METRO always shoots first. ALWAYS. To expand on this GOOGLE: Killer Cops in Las Vegas Inspire Grave Concern ---- The MURDER of Erik Scott by METRO was not an accident. He just happened to be next. Number 158.