Clayton Pierce dies in fatal Fort Collins shooting
Fatal Fort Collins shooting death of Clayton Pierce – Obituary
The suspect who allegedly shot a police officer Sunday in Northern Colorado before being fatally shot by police has been identified as Clayton Pierce.
Fort Collins police responded to a single-vehicle rollover crash around 12:40 p.m. near Mountain Avenue and Bryan Avenue. When officers arrived, 42-year-old Clayton Pierce was standing outside his car with a gun, according to a police department news release on Monday.
Pierce opened fire on the officers, hitting one whose identity has not yet been disclosed. The officers returned fire, but Pierce fled into Grandview Cemetery. He was located there, and another exchange of gunfire ensued. A SWAT team arrived, administered medical aid to Pierce, and transported him to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
On Sunday, July 21, 2024, Fort Collins police cars blocked roads outside Grandview Cemetery after the incident in which a man allegedly shot a police officer.
Police did not specify whether Pierce was struck in the initial gunfight or at the cemetery, nor did they detail the types of firearms he possessed, but investigators confirmed he had several weapons on him.
The injured officer has since been released from the hospital and is recovering, the department reported.
Several parked cars were hit by gunfire during the shooting. Authorities believe Pierce was alone in the car when it crashed but noted he had two dogs with him. One dog was found, but the other, a pit bull, remains missing.
The Eighth Judicial Critical Incident Response Team and Larimer County Sheriff’s Office are currently investigating the shooting.
Court records reveal Pierce had a long criminal history spanning at least two decades, mostly in Larimer County.
His more serious convictions include a 2006 charge for aggressive driving on a revoked license, a 2007 conviction for possessing a weapon as a previous offender, a 2011 case involving charges of kidnapping, felony menacing, and drug distribution, for which he served 12 years in prison for the drug charge, and a 2020 conviction for DUI and vehicular eluding, resulting in a two-year prison sentence.
In 2020, the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office labeled him “Larimer County’s most wanted” as he was sought on a felony warrant for the DUI and vehicular eluding charges.
Fatal Fort Collins shooting death of Clayton Pierce – Obituary The suspect who allegedly shot a police officer Sunday in Northern Colorado before being fatally shot by police has been identified as Clayton Pierce. Fort Collins police responded to a single-vehicle rollover crash around 12:40 p.m. near Mountain Avenue and Bryan Avenue. When officers arrived,…
Fatal Fort Collins shooting death of Clayton Pierce – Obituary The suspect who allegedly shot a police officer Sunday in Northern Colorado before being fatally shot by police has been identified as Clayton Pierce. Fort Collins police responded to a single-vehicle rollover crash around 12:40 p.m. near Mountain Avenue and Bryan Avenue. When officers arrived,…