On the evening of June 13, 2021, 30-year-old Duane Manzanares was shot and killed by Denver police after officers responded to a report of a man firing into a white Mercedes near East Colfax Avenue. Officers found the damaged vehicle and shell casings, then located Manzanares nearby. He matched the caller’s description and was seen with a large semi-automatic handgun tucked in his waistband and drinking from a whiskey bottle.

Bodycam footage and reports show the encounter lasted 33 seconds. Officers ordered Manzanares to put his hands on his head; he did not comply, tossed the liquor bottle, and reached toward the gun. Three of the four officers on scene — Samuel Bailey, Steven Whiteman, and Ryan Nelson — fired 11 rounds; Christine Abrams did not fire. Manzanares was struck multiple times and died of his injuries.

The Denver District Attorney concluded the officers reasonably believed they faced imminent danger and did not file criminal charges. The City of Denver later approved an $800,000 settlement for Manzanares’s family. Does anyone have additional firsthand information about the moments before officers arrived at East Colfax?