Man shot at by officer Tuesday shot himself in head, police say

Officer Marcus Martin, 58, shot twice at the man, whose family feared he was suicidal, according to a briefing by the Metropolitan Police Department on Thursday.

Police didn’t yet know if either of Martin’s two bullets struck Alan Keith Baker, 42, but police know Baker shot himself in the head, Assistant Sheriff Charles Hank said. Baker was hospitalized at University Medical Center and was on life support Thursday afternoon, Hank said.

Baker’s family called 911 about 2 p.m. Tuesday to report he was armed with a gun and knives, police said. Baker had a history of mental illness and had threatened to harm himself, police said.

As officers spoke with the family outside their house at 3305 Lingo St., near West Cheyenne Avenue and North Grand Canyon Drive, Baker exited the house in a bathrobe.

In body-worn camera footage shown at the press conference, Martin was seen asking if Baker could show his hands. Moments later, police said, Baker pulled a .38-caliber revolver out of his bathrobe.

Martin quickly commanded Baker to drop the gun before firing twice about 2:17 p.m. Police said Baker then retreated toward the front door and out of sight. A few seconds later, an off-camera gunshot could be heard, which Hank said was Baker shooting himself in the head.

A police helicopter noticed Baker was motionless outside the house and alerted police on the ground, Hank said. Officers approached Baker from behind a shield before asking for medical help.

Martin, a former department spokesman, has been with Metro since August 1995. He was placed on routine paid leave following the shooting.

Although Baker is not expected to survive, he was arrested on two counts of assault on a protected person with a deadly weapon.

The shooting was Metro’s third of the year.

Contact Mike Shoro at mshoro@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5290. Follow @mike_shoro on Twitter.