SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) – The Syracuse Police Department placed five officers on administrative leave, in accordance with standard procedure, after they were involved in a shooting on Sunday night when responding to a domestic dispute.
Police Chief Kenton Buckner said Tyiesha Fletcher, 33, was shot by an officer in her apartment on the 100 block of Frisbee Court after arming herself with multiple knives. Fletcher is listed in stable condition at Upstate Hospital.
All five officers were placed on administrative leave in accordance with department policy as they were the officers on the scene when the shots were fired.
This is the first police shooting under Buckner’s tenure after he took over as police chief in December. He wanted the community to know the investigation is still in the early stages.
“It appears to me that the actions taken by the officers were reasonable and necessary,” Buckner said. “Obviously, this is based on preliminary information, but I want to make sure our investigation is comprehensive.”
Of the five officers placed on leave, only one of them discharged their weapon at Fletcher. Buckner did not disclose how many rounds were fired during the altercation.
But considering the report Buckner received said Fletcher armed herself with multiple knives during the incident, he stood by the actions of his officers.
“As I promised the officers, when you’re right we’re gonna support you,” Buckner said. “If we had issues with it then we would be talking about something different. So far, I’m comfortable with their actions.”
Once the police collect all the evidence and conduct interviews over the incident, they will turn the case over to the district attorney who will rule on if the shooting was justified.
Buckner noted that there is not a lot of new information for the public because of the quick turn around between the shooting and the press conference.
“This is what happens when you have a press conference two days after an incident,” Buckner said. “You want meat and potatoes and I have green beans and corn for you.”
