TAYLORSVILLE, Utah — A man was shot and killed by police in Taylorsville after officers responded to a domestic violence situation.
The man was later identified as 34-year-old Joseph Potts.
Police report he has no history of aggravated violence and officers had not had any previous contact with him.
The incident first began at around 10 p.m. at a home in the area of 5000 South 3800 West.
Officers responded to the scene on reports that Potts and his wife were involved in some sort of domestic violence incident.
Once police arrived in the area, they found the woman and the couple's 3-month-old child were able to escape from the home uninjured. Potts was still in the home when officers arrived.
"The male inside the residence began firing rounds inside the residence and also from inside to outside the residence as that was going on, they were attempting to call and negotiate with him and were not having success with that," explained Lt. Cheshire with the Taylorsville Police Department.
It's unclear if the shots fired by the man were directed at responding officers.
"All I know is that there were shots that were fired inside the residence and there were also shots that were fired from inside the residence to outside the residence at different times in the evening while we were here," Cheshire said.
When Potts eventually came into the home, he was wearing tactical-type gear and showed his rifle, Taylorsville police reported.
Police responded by firing their weapons at him and he was pronounced deceased at the scene.
The officer involved in the critical incident was a SWAT team member, police reported.
As officials responded, a shelter-in-place order was in effect for neighboring residences. That order was terminated and residents were able to freely come and go from their homes.
No officers were reported to have sustained injuries in the incident, Lt. Cheshire said.
Now, an investigation into the incident is being handled by the Salt Lake City Police Department, as is the protocol for officer-involved critical incidents.
