DA clears Boulder police officer involved in University Hill shootout

Mitchell Byars, Daily Camera, Boulder, Colo.
·2 min read

Oct. 31—The Boulder County District Attorney's Office cleared the officer involved in a shootout on University Hill earlier this month of any wrongdoing.

According to a letter released by the Boulder District Attorney's Office Monday, Boulder police Officer Eric Stephens was involved in a shootout with two men on University Hill on Oct. 2. One of the men, Zakiyy Lucas, was shot in the arm and arrested while the second suspect, Garbriel Sharma, was later identified and also arrested.

Stephens was placed on paid leave pending an investigation by the Critical Incident Response Team.

Boulder District Attorney Michael Dougherty in the letter cleared Stephens of any wrongdoing and ruled the shooting was justified.

The investigation ultimately could not conclusively determine whether Lucas was shot by Stephens or Sharma based on the gunshot wound and the timing of the injury, but Dougherty said that ultimately did not impact the ruling of the investigation.

"This incident could have ended much worse, for everyone involved and for the community members in the area," Dougherty said in a statement. "The law enforcement officers responded quickly and demonstrated real courage. Whenever a police officer uses potentially deadly physical force, the ensuing investigation is important to all those involved and to our community.

"I am grateful that the Critical Incident Team conducted an independent and thorough investigation. Based on our office's review, it is clear that Officer Stephens acted lawfully and was legally justified in his response to the actions of Mr. Lucas."

Lucas and Sharma were both charged with attempted murder and their cases remain pending.

According to the letter, Stephens and another officer were investigating a nuisance call on University Hill at 1:27 a.m. when they heard a witness had called 911 about a large brawl that possibly involved firearms nearby.

Stephens and the other officer left the nuisance call to respond to the brawl at 1156 13th Street. According to investigators, Stephens saw Lucas fire a weapon, which prompted Stephens to begin firing his weapon, as he believed it was an active shooter situation.

According to body camera video, Lucas then dropped his weapon and began to run before Stephens told him to stop. While the officers were putting Lucas into custody, Sharma is believed to have fired four shots in their direction, after which Lucas tells police he had been shot in the arm.

One of the officers put a tourniquet on Lucas, who was taken to Boulder Community Health's Foothills Hospital. According to the letter, a bullet passed through Lucas' forearm, and doctors could not determine the type of bullet or direction of the shot.

But in an interview, Stephens said he fired four shots and believes that he did in fact hit Lucas.