Fort Wayne Police treated a 28-year-old suicidal man they shot during a standoff at his downtown apartment July 19, 2005, as a “terrorist” and then lied about at least one aspect of the shooting afterward, his family alleges in a newly filed complaint with the department.

Rudy Escobedo was shot and killed at close range by two of several police officers on the department’s version of a SWAT team who forced their way into his barricaded Westberry apartment.

He was found in a small closet with a gun held upside down to his head, which officers claimed he pointed at one of them after being asked to put it down. One officer opened fire on Escobedo with a 9-millimeter Glock while another shot him with less-than-lethal bean bags.

This happened after police halted communications with him, released 12 times the normal incapacitating dose of tear gas into his apartment and launched a flash-bang grenade into his room that exploded near his head. That led one expert in police tactics to believe he was probably deaf and blind at the time of his death, according to a lawsuit filed by Escobedo’s family in December 2005 and still tied up in federal court.

In the complaint filed Thursday, the family said “Escobedo was treated not as a mentally disturbed citizen in need of help, but as a terrorist.” A citizen’s complaint usually would be investigated by the department’s Internal Affairs division, which then will issue a report. It’s not clear when the complaint from Escobedo’s family will be reviewed, but the issue of whether a court will hold anyone criminally responsible for what happened that night remains uncertain.

Escobedo also tried to call police as the tear gas was crashing through his windows and into his home. His family claims someone from the department used his phone at least twice after the shooting – probably to see whom he had called immediately prior.

The complaint also contends police lied to the family’s attorneys and the public regarding Escobedo’s attempts to call police, and withheld that information from authorities investigating the shooting.

A recent ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Theresa L. Springmann absolved the city and the officers who fired the fatal shots of any responsibility in Escobedo’s death, though lawyers for his family are asking the judge to reconsider that decision.

They claim testimony from the two officers involved in the shooting differs in how Escobedo supposedly pointed the gun at one of them, enough so that a jury should decide whether they are either lying or incorrectly recalling how things happened.

Springmann did rule that a jury will decide whether some members of the police department used excessive force in firing the tear gas and storming the apartment. The city is appealing that decision. City lawyer Carol Taylor said Springmann requested more information from the city on whether police use of grenades and tear gas in Escobedo’s apartment constituted “excessive force.”

“But, in our opinion, she did rule that the shooting was justified based on the facts that were presented,” Taylor said. The standoff with Escobedo lasted about 4 1/2 hours and involved an armored personnel carrier and snipers on streets surrounding his apartment at 708 W. Berry St.

The saga began about 4:30 a.m. when Escobedo called 911 asking for help. He said he was on cocaine and Antabuse – a drug given to some alcoholics – and ready to kill himself. He apparently had hallucinations of police already in his home, according to a transcript of the 911 call.

Police had decided to use force against Escobedo possibly by 8 a.m., but definitely by 8:30 a.m., according to court records. At times Escobedo made statements that he would be willing to surrender, but these were erratic.

Escobedo made five calls to a cell phone with dead batteries police had used to call him originally, according to phone records.

But this information did not come to light until later.

Police also threw flash-bang grenades into the apartment. After one went off near Escobedo’s head, police were able to gain access to his bedroom through a barricaded door, at which point they found him in the closet.

Officer Brian Martin put a flashlight on Escobedo, yelled to the other officers Escobedo had a gun to his head and ordered him to drop the gun. Escobedo didn’t, according to court documents, and began pointing the gun at Martin.

Martin fired four to five shots from his Glock and struck Escobedo in the chest. Officer Jason Brown claimed to have seen Escobedo point his gun at Martin and fired bean bags at him. Martin said in court documents Escobedo dropped the gun in between his legs and slumped forward. That’s when Martin unloaded another volley of shots into Escobedo.

“He just, he went forward and he kind of went off to, he kind of flopped to his side a little bit. And, and just that was about it, man. He was done,” said Martin in an interview with detectives afterward.


– Reporter Evan Goodenow contributed to this story.