An Alaska State Trooper fired his handgun while responding to a report of a suicidal teenager in a Southwest Alaska village last weekend, authorities said.
Trooper Christopher Green was called to a home in the Yukon River village of Marshall around 2 p.m. Saturday with another trooper and a Marshall tribal police officer in response to reports that an armed 18-year-old woman was threatening to kill herself, troopers spokesman Austin McDaniel said in an email. Troopers identified Green in an update Wednesday.
No one was injured during the incident, troopers said.
One trooper remained outside while Green and the police officer entered the house and tried to speak with the teenager, McDaniel said. Green and the police officer “were leaving the residence to get behind cover” when she produced a loaded handgun, he said.
Troopers said that Green discharged his handgun as they left the home “(d)ue to the female’s actions.”
The troopers’ Western Alaska Major Crimes Unit is conducting an initial investigation into the incident, troopers said. It will be independently reviewed by the state Office of Special Prosecutions.
McDaniel, citing the ongoing investigation, said he could not provide more information including whether teen threatened the officers or what specific actions she took that prompted Green to fire. He also did not say where Green aimed his weapon or how many shots were fired.
The teenager left the home a short time later and was detained, troopers said. She was ultimately taken into protective custody, they said.
Green has been with the department for 16 years and is currently assigned to the Saint Mary’s post, troopers said. He and the other trooper were in Marshall investigating a separate incident on Saturday, McDaniel said. He said troopers plan to release Green’s body-worn camera video as well as footage from vehicle camera recordings when the investigation concludes.