Saint Louis University Police Officer Shoots, Kills Armed Man Near Campus
The campus police officer has been placed on administrative leave, and normal campus activity has resumed while the incident is being investigated by homicide detectives.
A fatal shooting of a 36-year-old man by a St. Louis University (SLU) campus police officer on June 25 is under investigation. The incident happened near the university’s biomedical engineering building in response to a domestic altercation, according to a statement by SLU Director of Public Safety Darryl Walker.
Immediately after the shooting, the SLU police officer tended to the wounded suspect, identified as Omar Zulueta, Jr. After paramedics arrived at the scene, Zulueta was taken to the hospital where he later died.
The incident was the first fatal shooting by an SLU campus police officer.
The campus police officer, who is a 30-year law enforcement veteran, was taken into custody, and the school placed him on administrative leave while the case is being investigated.
Zulueta was carrying two firearms, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. His mother, Dorothy Slaughter, told the Post-Dispatch that her son was with his girlfriend driving around the area and was shot when, at some point, he got out of the car.
SLU students, parents, faculty and staff received two text messages regarding the shooting from the University Department of Public Safety. The first warned them to avoid the area of the shooting but did not specify the location, according to a report by the Riverfront Times.
The second text a couple of hours later announced that the SLU Department of Public Safety and St. Louis police were at the scene of the incident and that normal activity could resume.
A statement released by SLU President Fred Pestello said the following, “A white Department of Public Safety officer shot and killed Black man near a university building close to our north campus. While we await the facts of the tragedy, we know that officer-involved shootings inflict vicarious trauma on our communities, particularly among our Black and Brown friends and neighbors.”
If you appreciated this article and want to receive more valuable industry content like this, click here to sign up for our FREE digital newsletters!
Related Content
Leading in Turbulent Times: Effective Campus Public Safety Leadership for the 21st Century
This new webcast will discuss how campus public safety leaders can effectively incorporate Clery Act, Title IX, customer service, “helicopter” parents, emergency notification, town-gown relationships, brand management, Greek Life, student recruitment, faculty, and more into their roles and develop the necessary skills to successfully lead their departments. Register today to attend this free webcast!
While I applaud the writer of the article to include the fact that the officer attended to Zulueta after he was shot, I can’t help wondering why the University President would release a statement like this:
“A white Department of Public Safety officer shot and killed Black man near a university building close to our north campus. While we await the facts of the tragedy, we know that officer-involved shootings inflict vicarious trauma on our communities, particularly among our Black and Brown friends and neighbors.”
Is he or his Public Relations person trying to incite violence? What does the color of their skin have to do with the shooting?
I thought he was going to “await the facts of the tragedy”!
Officer was taken into custody?
“White” man killed a “Black” man???
What the heck, that’s the kind of points made prominent in the story and the official statement?
Seriously, we need to know more about this other than the salacious commentary present in this story.
Both of the above comments are spot on. What does the writer mean when they say the officer was taken into custody?
Why would the University President word his statement the way he did. How about being a responsible person and put the facts out there that a shooting occurred and is being investigated. Then let people know the campus is safe and campus life will proceed as normal and that there is no threat to be concerned with.
There is a reason police agencies have public information officers to disseminate information on sensitive/tragic investigations.
It is to provide context and the timely release of ‘facts’ related to the incident. The president will likely have a difficult time explaining the officer’s ‘arrest’ once the involved LEO’s name is released. President Zulueta’s overt reference to each parties race also implies the officer’s actions were driven by color rather than the prior actions of the deceased subject.