That's the scenario in the case of Jordan Koehn, a 24-year-old CSU graduate student who pointed a gun at his own head before aiming it at officers.
See photos and get details of this extremely difficult story below.
The case is described in a decision letter (read it below) from Eighth Judicial District DA Clifford Riedel in which he found that the shooting of Koehn was justified.
At 8:42 p.m. on September 29, according to the document, Koehn's mom called the Fort Collins Police Department from her home in Minnesota. She said she'd been contacted by her other son, who'd received a text message from Koehn "indicating he was going to kill himself."Apparently, suicide wasn't specifically mentioned in the text, but given that Koehn had apparently threatened something similar in the past (albeit without acting on it), she felt it was important for police to check on his welfare, especially since she said he had access to guns.
Three FCPD officers were dispatched to Koehn's apartment, on the 3500 block of Stover Street, an area captured in the interactive graphic below. If you have problems seeing the image, click "View Larger Map."
View Larger Map
Koehn's brother was at the apartment when the cops arrived. He said he was concerned because Koehn wasn't answering the door when he knocked, even though his car was there. He added that Koehn had been drinking — something his brother described as a problem for him.
Although Koehn didn't respond to the officers' knocking, either, one of them was able to see a gun on a table and a bottle of alcohol through a window. As such, the officers contacted a maintenance man, who provided them with a key. Upon opening the door, they could see Jordan lying on the floor, with one hand out of sight — and when they asked him to show the other one, the document says he giggled or chuckled at the command.
He subsequently showed both hands — but the report says he then lunged for something and came up holding a semi-automatic handgun, which he put to his own head.
Continue for more about the charges against Jordan Koehn, including the decision letter regarding his shooting. A moment later, Koehn lowered the gun to his lap, then raised it to his head again — after which the narrative says he pointed it at the cops.In response, one of the cops opened fire, striking Koehn on multiple occasions.
Afterward, Koehn's blood was tested, and it turned out its alcohol content was at a potentially lethal level: 0.45, according to the Fort Collins Coloradoan. That's more than five times the legal intoxication limit.
Nonetheless, Koehn survived, even sending a Facebook chemistry group of which he's a member an upbeat October 5 note that reads, "Hey Everyone! Thanks for all the support in light of recent events concerning me. I am making a quick recovery and should be back to doing chemistry in no time."
Apparently not. After finally being released from the hospital, Koehn was arrested and booked into Larimer County Jail earlier this week on charges of felony menacing and using a weapon while drunk. He was scheduled to make his initial court appearance today.
Here's a larger look at Koehn's booking photo, followed by the decision letter.
Send your story tips to the author, Michael Roberts.
