On the morning of November 9, 2012, 35-year-old Lakewood Police agent James Jeffery Davies was killed while officers were responding to a prowler call near 19th Avenue and Eaton Street. Officers heard gunfire from a nearby house and observed a man, later identified as Joe Anthony Ruiz, firing a handgun from the front of the residence; Ruiz and two others were taken into custody and Ruiz was later charged with illegal possession of a firearm.

As officers worked to secure the scene and establish a perimeter, Davies was mistakenly identified as an armed suspect by fellow officer Devaney Braley, who was on the opposite side of a fence. Braley shouted for the person he saw to drop a weapon; when Davies did not comply, Braley fired and Davies was fatally wounded. The district attorney later ruled the shooting a tragic accident and did not bring criminal charges against Braley. The family filed a civil lawsuit against the city that was later settled, and the department revised policy and procedures after the incident.