Fatal Shooting By Alexandria Officer Justified; Bodycam Footage Released

ALEXANDRIA, VA — Alexandria Police provided a briefing with body camera footage of a fatal officer-involved shooting of a man in crisis in August. The briefing comes as the Alexandria Commonwealth's Attorney's office ruled the officer's action were justified, and the use of force was reasonable, according to the police department.

Police have identified the man fatally shot by an officer on Aug. 12 as Paul Behan. The police response to Behan's residence at 5101 Maris Ave. came after a 911 caller indicated his coworker, who lives in Alexandria, was considering suicide.

In an excerpt of the 911 call released by authorities, the caller said his coworker was suspended from his job and was dealing with marital problems. The caller said the man was believed to own at least one gun and was likely inebriated and slurring words due to alcohol consumption.

Editor's note: The body camera footage of the officer-involved shooting may contain graphic images and language. The footage is embedded at the bottom of this story, too.

Body camera footage shows several Alexandria police officers approach Behan's unit, and one of the officers asks Behan to open the door and show he isn't armed. When Behan opens the door, an officer spots a gun. Footage shows Behan retreat back into the apartment before emerging toward officers with the gun.

"The officers repeatedly urged Mr. Behan to drop the firearm as they reposition to a safer location," said Capt. Jason North of the Alexandria Police Department.

Additional footage shows Behan sitting on the stairs of the apartment complex and briefly pointing the gun at officers, leading officers to take cover.

North said additional officers arrived in an attempt to de-escalate the incident, and a hostage negotiator takes over conversations with Behan. At one point, Behan becomes agitated about an officer shining a light into the building, saying he will shoot the light out. After several officers react to Behan pointing his gun, several gunshots are heard in the footage.

"Mr. Behan disregarded multiple commands to drop his firearm and aimed his gun at officers," said North. "In response, one officer fired three rounds from their department-issued rifle, all of which struck Mr. Behan."

Alexandria Fire and EMS medics responded, and Behan was pronounced dead at the scene.

The officer who fired the shots is a nine-year member of the police department assigned to the Field Operations Bureau and is trained as a hostage negotiator. North said 11 total officers were involved in the response at the apartment.

No injuries to officers or other residents were reported. Behan's gun was identified as a 9 mm Beretta storm rifle with one round loaded.

Alexandria Police requested the Northern Virginia Critical Incident Response Team to investigate the officer-involved shooting and present findings to the Commonwealth's Attorney's office. The team was created by Northern Virginia localities in 2021 to investigate critical incidents involving law enforcement.

An internal investigation is ongoing and is advancing to the police department's Office of Professional Responsibility and the Alexandria independent policing auditor.