Reasonable force was used and officers complied with policies and procedures in the fatal shooting of a man by Frankfort police on Dec. 30, according to preliminary information from an internal administrative investigation released Tuesday by that department.
Gary Meadows, 55, was shot twice by Frankfort police after he allegedly pointed a handgun at officers on Winding Way Drive.
The internal investigation is continuing, as is a Kentucky State Police investigation.
The department released a statement saying, "Preliminary information gathered by Frankfort Police Department detectives" indicates that the officers used reasonable force and acted "within guidelines and in compliance with Frankfort Police Department policies and procedures." The statement did not provide any other details about the investigation.
Two officers remain on administrative leave, as required by Frankfort police policy. They are Todd Smither, 31, who joined the department in 2005 and was assigned to the Tactical Response Unit in 2007, and Billy Graves, 30, who joined the department in 2011 and was assigned to the Tactical Response Unit in 2012.
Police have given the following account for the shooting: At 9:15 p.m. Dec. 30, police received a 911 call from a woman, saying a man had trapped her in a home on Winding Way Drive, pointed a gun at her and threatened to shoot anyone who entered the house.
Police contacted the woman by phone once they arrived at the house. She told them she had secured herself in a separate area of the house away from Meadows.
The tactical response and hostage negotiations units were notified and established a perimeter around the house.
Meadows then came out of the house unexpectedly, carrying a handgun. Officers told him multiple times to drop his weapon, but he instead pointed it at them. The officers then shot him.
Meadows was taken to Frankfort Regional Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Once the internal and state police investigations are completed, the results will be forwarded to the office of Franklin County Commonwealth's Attorney Larry Cleveland.
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