Thurston County man shot by deputy July 4 reportedly had fake gun. How did it happen?
A Thurston County man who a deputy shot at his home on July 4 has been charged with assaulting two deputies with what was found to be a fake pistol.
Geoffrey Ian Gilley, 35, attended his preliminary appearance in Thurston County Superior Court on July 5. Deputies arrested him the day before after responding to what they thought was a domestic violence call on the 7500 block of 14th Avenue Northeast near Lacey.
Deputies allege he produced a weapon and one of the responding deputies fired his weapon, according to a news release from the Grays Harbor Sheriff’s Office, which is leading the investigation into the incident. The team includes the Mason County Sheriff’s Office and Washington State Patrol.
The shooting reportedly caused “minor injuries” to Gilley, and he was treated at Providence St. Peter Hospital. Court records say a bullet may have grazed his torso.
Court records indicate Gilley’s “weapon” was actually an airsoft gun and the records say Gilley was experiencing a mental health crisis.
After he was treated at the hospital, deputies booked Gilley into the Thurston County jail on suspicion of two counts of second-degree assault. On July 5, Superior Court Judge Carol Murphy found probable cause for two counts of third-degree assault against law enforcement.
Murphy ordered Gilley be released on his personal recognizance, according to court records. However, part of the conditions of release were that Gilley would be evaluated by Washington state Designated Crisis Responders before being released.
In a Tuesday news release, the Grays Harbor Sheriff’s Office said crisis responders determined Gilley was “not an immediate risk” to himself or others and there was no legal reason to detain him. Gilley was released on July 6.
Paul Logan, chief of special services for the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office, told The Olympian on Wednesday that investigators are still working to determine whether the deputy who shot Gilley should face charges.
Gilley has a known criminal history that dates back to 2006, most of which includes lower-level crimes that were prosecuted in Thurston County District Court and some in Olympia Municipal Court, according to court records.
However, he was accused of fourth-degree domestic violence in two Thurston County Superior Court cases, one in 2010 and another in 2017.
The investigation
A probable cause statement describes the investigation into the shooting from the perspective of law enforcement.
Two deputies responded to a domestic violence call at about 3:50 p.m. July 4 at a home on 14th Avenue. Gilley reportedly had called 911 and told dispatch, “Send the police out here or I will kill someone” and hung up the phone.
A third deputy arrived after the first two contacted Gilley on the front porch. The statement says this deputy heard gunshots as he approached the residence and saw the first two deputies standing in front of the home with their pistols drawn.
The deputy joined the first two and entered the home. In the main entryway, the deputy reported seeing a black pistol holster and a tan pistol on the floor.
Gilley had sprawled on the ground and the trio of deputies moved to detain him “without further incident,” according to the statement.
The deputies checked Gilley for injuries but found only a small wound on his upper belly just below his chest. The statement says it appeared he was grazed by a bullet or perhaps struck with a ricochet from the gunfire.
The first two deputies then briefed the third deputy on what had occurred. They reportedly said they greeted Gilley on the front porch, he retreated into the home and then returned with a pistol in a holster.
The deputies allege Gilley removed the pistol from the holster and pointed it at them. One of the deputies yelled something about a gun and fired shots, according to the statement.
The third deputy inspected the pistol the deputies said Gilley pointed at them. He reported it appeared realistic, but it had an orange tip, indicative of a fake gun, that had been colored black with permanent marker.
Three shell casings were found at the scene. One rested around the front right of a Toyota Highlander that was parked in the driveway, another rested near the front end of the vehicle and the last one lay on the windshield of the vehicle.
A fourth deputy reported that Gilley made an “excited utterance” admitting to pulling a firearm on the deputies, court records say.
During the incident, a woman stood outside near the Toyota with her children in the car. She reportedly told deputies Gilley had several mental health diagnoses and that he had stopped taking his medication for about two months.
As a result, she said Gilley had been slipping into a crisis about every three weeks. She said Gilley had an airsoft gun that was very realistic.
