Off-duty Seattle officer held in shooting at Sturgis biker rally

By HECTOR CASTRO
P-I REPORTER

An off-duty Seattle police officer attending South Dakota's famous Sturgis Motorcycle Rally has been detained in connection with a shooting that left one man injured early Saturday morning.

The shooting followed a confrontation between Hell's Angels Motorcycle gang members and members of the Iron Pigs Motorcycle club, South Dakota investigators said. Iron Pigs is a riding club that often counts law enforcement officers among its membership, according to the club's website.

During the altercation, two shots were fired and one of the Hell's Angel members was struck. That man was taken to a local hospital for treatment and his condition was unknown.

Authorities detained the suspected shooter, a Seattle officer, but he has not been arrested.

"Early this morning, the Seattle Police Department received notification that one of our officers was involved in an off-duty shooting in Sturgis, South Dakota," said a statement released by the Seattle Police Department Saturday. "We believe that four other off-duty Seattle Police officers were present when the shooting occurred," the statement reads.

Neither officials in South Dakota nor Seattle would release the names of the officers involved.

Chief Gil Kerlikowske is sending a team of detectives to Sturgis to learn more about the incident, including homicide Lt. Jim Dermody, homicide detectives and a sergeant with the Office of Professional Accountability. The team is expected to leave for South Dakota Saturday evening.

"The Seattle Police Department considers this a matter of utmost seriousness," the statement reads. "All five officers will be placed on administrative reassignment (relieved of duty) pending further investigation by the South Dakota authorities."

The shooting happened during the annual biker rally in Sturgis, S.D., which draws thousands of riders each year for a series of events over several days. The rally is scheduled to end Sunday.

Around 1 a.m. Saturday, Sturgis police were called to the Loud American Roadhouse in the center of town in response to a report of a fight and shooting, according to press releases issued by Sturgis police and the Meade County Sheriff's Office.

Officers from several agencies converged on the popular bar, evacuating patrons and securing the club.

Trevor Jones, assistant director of the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, declined to provide any details as to what led to the shooting, citing the on-going nature of the investigation. He said none of those involved in the incident were from South Dakota.

The shooting is being investigated by several agencies.

Seattle police Sgt. Rich O'Neill, president of the Seattle Police Officer's Guild, said he had not been contacted regarding the shooting, but said that officers have a right to protect themselves and should be given the benefit of the doubt while the allegations are investigated.

"They deserve to have it played out," he said.

 

hopefully the leo wasnt drunk or in the wrong...bad PR affects all cops.

 

well.....at 1 am in a bar......armed.....we will see how this plays out

 

You would think a police officer would know how to diffuse or walk away, but maybe he was threatened and feared for his safety... he had four fellow officers around him, guess what their story will be....

 

Gee I wonder which way the wind will blow on this one??! Get ready for the bias media onslaught too!!

 

Let's let the investigation run its course before jumping to any conclusions. If these guys did anything else for a living this would be a non-story.

 

+1. Let it run it's course.

 

he wasn't there a LEO
Was there possibly as a member of the Iron Pigs MC. Was in a bar with a hand gun. Was in a state that seems to not have a CCW reciprocity agreement with the state of Washington.
I agree it should run it's course, but it doesn't present well for him.

 

I will wait and see how this is played out before making a judgment or statement. Not enough information. Someone is in the wrong.

 

Not enough details to determine what happened but could be the LEO or some other person would be dead today had he not been carrying his weapon that day. To my knowledge a LEO is authorized to carry a firearm anywhere in this country, including a bar.