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BWC: Tenn. man shoots woman in the face before fatal OIS

Immediately after officers opened the door to the home, the man raised the gun and fired, leading Knoxville PD officers to fire several shots at them

BWC: Tenn. man shoots woman in the face before fatal OIS

“Almost simultaneously, they see [the suspect] in front of them, holding a gun and standing close to the woman. As soon as they announced themselves, [the suspect] lifted his arm and fired point-blank at the woman’s face,” the department stated

Knoxville News Sentinel

By Joanna Putman
Police1

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Body-camera footage from the Knoxville Police Department reveals the moment officers responded to a scene where a man shot a woman point-blank in the face inside her home, Knox News reported.

The April 27 incident unfolded rapidly after Knoxville Officers Hunter Powers and Cayden Riddle responded to a domestic disturbance call, according to the report. The officers, who had been informed of an armed man at the location, entered the home announcing their presence.

Click below to see full video.

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Knoxville News Sentinel

“Almost simultaneously, they see [the suspect] in front of them, holding a gun and standing close to the woman. As soon as they announced themselves, [the suspect] lifted his arm and fired point-blank at the woman’s face,” the department stated.

The officers responded by firing multiple shots, striking Griffin at least once, with the entire encounter lasting less than five seconds.

After neutralizing the threat, the officers secured Griffin’s weapon and attended to the injured woman, according to the report. The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene, and the 23-year-old woman was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.

The shooting is currently under investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the KPD’s Office of Professional Standards, according to the report. Both Powers and Riddle, who graduated from the Knoxville Police Department training academy in February 2023 and are assigned to West District Field Operations, are on routine administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigations.