Officials comb for evidence in police-involved shooting

Police continued to comb for evidence Wednesday a day after a 36-year-old man was fatally shot during a struggle with police officers. NYPD officials say an officer fatally shot Miguel Espinal, of

News 12 Staff

Dec 10, 2015, 3:34 AM

Updated 3,419 days ago

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Police continued to comb for evidence Wednesday a day after a 36-year-old man was fatally shot during a struggle with police officers.
NYPD officials say an officer fatally shot Miguel Espinal, of Yonkers, after a police chase from the Bronx into Westchester.
Police say officers were on patrol when they spotted a Nissan sedan driving recklessly. They say they tried to stop the car, but Espinal tried to flee by driving onto the northbound Saw Mill Parkway. Later, Espinal made a U-turn and headed the wrong way along the parkway before crashing into a black Volkswagen driven by a civilian bystander near the Cross County Parkway.
After the crash, Espinal climbed out of the window of the damaged car and fled on foot into the woods. After a chase of about 100 yards, cops caught the suspect and struggled to arrest him. During the struggle, "one officer's firearm discharged, striking the 36-year-old male in the torso," according to a statement by the NYPD.
Espinal was pronounced dead at the scene.
There is no word yet if Espinal had a weapon.
The driver of the black Volkswagen and Akeem Smith, 25, of Yonkers, who was a passenger in Espinal's car, were taken to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx with injuries that were not life-threatening. Both have been treated and released.
Espinal, who was on parole for burglary, may have been wanted on other charges in Florida. His family says that still didn't give police the right to kill him.