Modesto police release name of officer involved in shooting

Police on Wednesday released the name of the officer who shot a man whose mother called 911 for help last week.

Dave Wallace, a 17-year veteran of the Modesto Police Department, shot the suspect once near the entrance of his home in the 500 block of Milo Road.

Department spokeswoman Heather Graves said the man assaulted the officer before the shooting, but she would not provide details. She would not release the name of the man, still hospitalized, because detectives still are interviewing witnesses.

Wallace and another officer responded to the home just before midnight Oct. 16, after the man’s mother called 911 saying she needed help. The line abruptly disconnected and the dispatcher could not reach her after trying to call back.

Graves said detectives are investigating whether the man assaulted his mother and then tampered with the telephone line.

There were five children – the man’s two sons and his sister’s three daughters – in the home at the time of the initial family disturbance and the subsequent officer-involved shooting. Graves said two of the children were 9 years old and two were 13, but she did not know the age of the fifth child.

Officers heard the woman screaming when they arrived, and the shooting occurred about 10 minutes later. Graves would not say what transpired during those 10 minutes.

Since January, police have been to the Milo Road home more than 10 times, Graves said. Many of the calls were for domestic disputes, and others were security checks and 911 hangups.

Graves said more information about the shooting will likely be released later this week.

This story was originally published October 22, 2014 at 5:03 PM with the headline "Modesto police release name of officer involved in shooting."