Authorities Thursday publicly identified a patrolman and a domestic-assault suspect involved last weekend in a Chollas View-area police shooting that left the latter man wounded.
Robert Gladysz, an 18-month employee of the San Diego Police Department, opened fire on 29-year-old Steffon Nutall as the suspect was hiding in shrubbery at a residential complex in the 200 block of 47th Street, holding his infant daughter, according to the county Sheriff’s Department.
The department which investigates shootings involving SDPD personnel as part of a regional agreement designed to prevent conflicts of interest.
The events that led to the law enforcement gunfire began shortly before 10:30 p.m. Sunday, when Nutall showed up at his ex-girlfriend’s apartment in the 400 block of 47th Street, sheriff’s Lt. Michael Krugh said.
The woman made a 911 call to report that Nutall was outside her home, allegedly claiming that he would fire a gun through the front door if she would not let him in. When she complied with his demands out of fear for her life and that of the couple’s 11-month-old daughter, he allegedly threatened to shoot the woman, snatched the child and walked out of the residence.
Seeing arriving police officers, the suspect bolted, ran across a set of trolley tracks and a parking lot at 47th Street Trolley Station and entered an adjacent residential complex. Police soon found him there, trying to conceal himself in a bush, according to Krugh.
When Nutall refused orders to disarm himself and surrender, Gladysz shot him at least once, police said.
“It was (then) learned (that) the suspect was holding his daughter during the … shooting,” the lieutenant said. “The child was unharmed and was returned to her family.”
Paramedics took Nutall to a hospital, where he underwent surgery and was listed in stable condition. He was arrested on suspicion of kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, exhibiting a firearm in a threatening manner and willful cruelty to a child with the potential for great bodily injury or death, according to police.
“Any additional charges will be evaluated by the District Attorney’s Office,” Krugh said.
The police shooting was the first of two to occur in San Diego within a roughly 24-hour period.
Shortly before 11 a.m. Monday, three SDPD officers opened fire on a man who was assaulting someone with a knife in the area of Friars Road and Morena Boulevard in Mission Valley. The suspect died at the scene of the shooting. His name has been withheld pending family notification.