Officers Who Fatally Shot Suspect In Mission Valley ID'd

SAN DIEGO, CA — Authorities Thursday publicly identified three lawmen who fatally shot a robbery suspect who allegedly threatened a store clerk with a knife this week at a Morena-area market, then took another man hostage and held the bladed weapon to his neck when confronted by police.

San Diego Police Department officers Michael Howells, Matthew Steinbach and Justin Tellam opened fire on the suspect, whose identity has not been released, at a transient camp in Mission Valley, according to the county sheriff's department, which investigates shootings involving SDPD personnel under terms of a regional agreement designed to prevent conflicts of interest.

The events that led to the law-enforcement shooting began shortly after 10:30 a.m. Monday, when the suspect allegedly walked out of a store in the 1000 block of Morena Boulevard with merchandise he had not paid for.

"The victim (was trying) to stop the suspect when the suspect pulled out a knife and threatened the victim," sheriff's Lt. Michael Krugh said. "The suspect then fled the scene on foot."

A short time later, police spotted a man matching the alleged robber's description carrying a knife in the 5300 block of Napa Street. When officers ordered him to halt, he refused, prompting them to try to subdue him with an electric stun gun. When that attempt failed, the suspect ran off, and officers gave chase.

The pursuit ended at a nearby squatters' camp in the 5300 block of Friars Road, Krugh said. There, the suspect allegedly grabbed a bystander and threatened to stab him, prompting Howells, Steinbach and Tellam to open fire.

The suspect died at the scene of the shooting. His name has been withheld pending family notification.

No one else was injured during the violent encounter, according to police.

Howells has been employed by the SDPD for 18 months, Steinbach for 12 years and Tellam for 6 1/2 years, Krugh said.

The police shooting was the first of two to occur in San Diego within a roughly 24-hour period.
At about 11 p.m. Sunday, SDPD Officer Robert Gladysz shot domestic- assault suspect Steffon Nutall, 29, as the latter allegedly was hiding in shrubbery at a Chollas View-area apartment complex, holding his infant daughter, according to sheriff's officials. Nutall survived the shooting, and the child was unharmed, Krugh said.

It only was after Gladysz, an 18-month employee of the SDPD, opened fire that police realized that the suspect had the baby in his arms, according to Krugh.

Nutall -- who allegedly had threatened to shoot his ex-girlfriend before snatching their child and fleeing -- was arrested on suspicion of kidnapping, assault with a deadly weapon, exhibiting a firearm in a threatening manner and willful cruelty to a child with the potential for great bodily injury or death.

— City News Service