Calaveras deputies, CHP involved in deadly shooting near San Andreas

A man waving around what witnesses reported as either an AR-15 or shotgun on a rural Calaveras County road was shot and killed by police Thursday night.

Three Calaveras County Sheriff's deputies and three California Highway Patrol officers responded to the report on Mountain Ranch Road between San Andreas and Mountain Ranch at about 9:45 p.m.

The man, identified only as a white male, was standing in an area between two homes holding a long black object that appeared to be a rifle or long firearm, according to a press release from the Calaveras County Sheriff's Office. The long black object had a laser-type sight attached.

The man pointed the object and laser toward the law enforcement officers and reportedly refused to comply with their orders.

"In fear for their safety as well as the safety of nearby residents, law enforcement officers fired their weapons striking the subject," according to the release.

Medics were dispatched to the scene but the man died there.

The press release did not say how many of the six deputies and officers fired their weapons or how many times the suspect was hit. It also did not say whether the object he was holding was a firearm.

A spokesperson from the sheriff's office had not returned phone calls to The Bee as of late Friday morning. The California Highway Patrol said all information about the incident will be released by the Calaveras County Sheriff's Office.

The Calaveras County District Attorney’s Office, Calaveras County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol responded with their respective Officer Involved Shooting Teams and/or Critical Incident Response Team to conduct a multi-agency investigation into the incident.

Mountain Ranch Road is currently closed just east of Rocky Road. There is no estimate as to when the road will open.

This story was originally published July 6, 2018 at 9:57 AM.