AURORA | A man who died after a police shooting in March on the Anschutz Medical Campus fatally wounded himself before police shot him, according to Adams County prosecutors.
Joseph Oliver Gorden, 50, died March 19 after a traffic stop on the campus in Aurora.
Early this month, Adams County District Attorney Dave Young sent a letter to University of Colorado Anschutz Campus police Chief Doug Abraham clearing Abraham’s officers of wrongdoing.
The letter details a confusing few minutes as campus police chased after Gorden following a report from his coworkers at University of Colorado Hospital that said he was suicidal and had a gun.
Police received a call from Gorden’s coworkers around 6:45 p.m. that night saying Gorden had sent a picture of his hands holding a gun and a message that said he “couldn’t take it anymore.”
Officers first found Gorden in his SUV in a parking garage near the campus and tried to contact him, but he drove away.
The officers followed Gorden with their lights and sirens on and he eventually stopped near East 16th Avenue and Quentin Street.
There, an officer got out of his car and drew his pistol.
Gorden was still sitting in the driver’s seat of the SUV and the officer saw him reach across his chest with a gun in his hand.
Then Gorden fired a shot and the officer returned fire, striking Gorden in the arm. The officer fired another shot seconds later when he saw Gorden move again.
Gorden died a short time later at nearby UCH.
It wasn’t until the Adams County Corner’s office conducted an autopsy that investigators learned Gorden committed suicide.
According to the letter, Gorden shot himself one time in the chest. That shot proved fatal. The officer’s first shot struck Gorden in the arm and the second shot missed.
Erika Matich, a spokeswoman for University of Colorado at the Anschutz Medical Campus, said the officer remains on paid administrative leave. The leave is routine following a shooting and will continue until an internal departmental review is complete.