Dayton Police Chief Richard Biehl said officers were called to the scene after a series of 9-1-1 calls alerted them that a man had stolen a gun out of a van and fired towards another vehicle.
"This person posed a lethal threat,” Biehl said, noting that Keirns fired seven rounds before police arrived.
The officer-involved shooting was the second this year by Dayton Police. The department identified Officers Joseph Sheen and Harry Dilley as the officers involved. They were not injured in the incident.
In one of the 9-1-1 calls obtained by the Dayton Daily News, a caller reports that his gun was stolen by a man who flagged him down.
“This guy was flashing a light in the street. He got right in front of my van. I stopped,” the caller said. “He came around to my passenger seat. He opened up the door. He said ‘you got to get me to the police station. You got to help me. They’re after me.’
"I had my firearm sitting on the passenger seat. He grabbed my gun. He ran off and he is firing. I don’t know where he went, but I can hear the shots,” the caller said.
Credit:
Credit:
Moments later, dispatch received another call reporting that shots were fired.
"He was in the middle of the road. He pointed the gun at us,” the second caller said.
“All we heard were gunshots. He came out into the road and pointed the gun at us,” the second caller said.
A cruiser camera video released by Dayton Police shows officers pull up on Keirns, order him to drop the weapon and then fire upon him. Another video shows officers rendering aid to him. Biehl said they were unsure how many times Keirns was hit, but it was at least three times.
“Keirns refused to drop the weapon. Fearing for their lives and the safety of others, both officers fired at Keirns, striking him multiple times,” the chief said.
Along with the gunfire, businesses damaged by rocks on Watervliet Avenue were also linked to Keirns. Angie’s Firehouse Tavern at 703 Watervliet Ave. was one of the businesses where vandalism was reported.
Owner Patrick Reed said found a rock inside the restaurant and glass windows on both sides shattered.
Credit:
Credit:
“Turns out the other business owners were coming out on the street and saying they had been targeted,” he said. “All the way from Taco Bell all the way down the street, everybody had damage to their front windows.”
He said the damages come at a bad time with COVID-19 restrictions already limiting space customers can use. He said however that he believed the businesses in the area would overcome the setback.
Biehl said that evidence ties the two incidents together.
He said Keirns has a long criminal history that includes multiple incidents of violence and drug possession. He said he is prohibited from having a firearm and previously assaulted police officers three times. Police are investigating whether he was under the influence during the Thursday morning shooting.
The professional standards bureau will be handling the administrative investigation, Biehl said.
About the Authors
