'They had every right to defend themselves': Pueblo police release footage of fatal shooting

Pueblo police released body and dash camera footage Monday that showed a suspect firing a pistol at police officers before they shot and killed him in a Popeyes parking lot on June 19.

Officers were called to the 1400 block of West U.S. Highway 50 at approximately 7:45 p.m. that day on a report of a man with a weapon, according to an initial news release from the Pueblo Police Department.

During a news conference Monday morning, police released the recording of a call from a concerned citizen to police dispatch stating they saw a man pointing a gun out of a black Dodge Dart outside of a nearby business. In the recorded phone call, the caller also identified the license plate on the vehicle.

Police located the vehicle a short time later outside of Popeyes on U.S. 50.

In the body cam footage released by Pueblo PD, officers could be seen and heard issuing loud verbal commands to the suspect to put his hands up and stop reaching for items in the vehicle. After approximately a minute and a half, one officer's body camera footage shows gunfire coming through the windshield of the driver's seat of the cornered Dodge Dart.

The officer can be seen scrambling for partial cover before returning fire with his service pistol. Muzzle flashes can be seen from other officers around the vehicle.

Another angle from a vehicle dash camera on a nearby cruiser clearly shows the suspect pulling out a handgun and opening fire on police before being shot in return.

The suspect has been identified by the Pueblo County Coroner's Office as Ronald Ray Valdez, 34, of Pueblo.

EMTs were called to the scene to render aid to Valdez, but he was declared dead on the scene.

Bullet impacts were documented in a patrol car near officers. A Taurus handgun, which had been reported stolen in mid-April, according to police, was recovered from the suspect's vehicle along with six shell casings and drug paraphernalia consistent with fentanyl and opioids, according to police.

Pueblo Police Chief Chris Noeller alleged that when the incident occurred, Valdez was awaiting sentencing on a felony drug distribution case.

The incident is being investigated by the 10th Judicial Critical Incident Response Team. After the investigation is concluded, the results will be forwarded to the 10th Judicial District Attorney's Office.

A total of six officers were placed on administrative leave following the incident. Since then, one officer who did not fire his weapon has returned to work. Noeller stated that he expects the rest to return to duty "shortly."

Why Pueblo Police released the body camera footage

While Pueblo police do not typically release body camera footage of shootings involving officers publicly, Noeller stated that in this instance, they chose to do so due to "inaccurate and defamatory" comments made about the actions of police during the incident.

"There were some allegations that came out that our officers didn't have the right vehicle when they contacted the person in this officer-involved shooting," Noeller said. "There was also information stating that he didn't have a weapon and hadn't done anything to deserve to be fired on. Clearly, that is not true ... they had every right to defend themselves and that's what they did."

Mayor, police chief express frustration with Colorado crime legislation

At Monday's conference, Mayor Heather Graham and Noeller expressed frustration with continued violent crime in Pueblo, despite efforts by the mayor and police department to simplify recruiting more officers as well as be more proactive in addressing violent crime before it happens.

Both blamed Colorado legislation, particularly "catch and release" programs they said allow violent criminals to be back on the streets after being arrested while awaiting court dates.

Graham related that there was a standoff with police on June 26 during which a man allegedly chased a victim with a machete, barricaded himself inside the victim's home, and threatened police with multiple large knives.

Police eventually entered the house and arrested the suspect for felony menacing, a restraining order violation, and criminal mischief.

However, by Saturday, he was released from jail, and was at the mayor's restaurant, Graham's Grill, demanding to speak to the mayor.

"The Pueblo Police Department's time was completely wasted with that eight-hour standoff to have the man released and back on the streets a couple of days later," Graham said. "Legislation that allows individuals to be out menacing, shooting stolen guns with felonies like in the officer-involved-shooting and enacting deadly force on my community needs to be overturned and cleaned up and yet I cannot do this alone."

Questions, comments, or story tips? Contact Justin at jreutterma@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @jayreutter1. Support local news, subscribe to the Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Pueblo police body cam footage shows suspect fire gun at officers