Little Rock authorities Monday identified the 54-year-old man fatally shot by police in a downtown alleyway early Sunday.
Michael Hornibrook of Little Rock died after he was shot by Little Rock police behind the downtown bar Ernie Biggs, authorities said.
Police said two Little Rock officers fired at Hornibrook after he reportedly raised a pistol toward the officers.
The two officers in the shooting -- Officer Brian Osmundson and Officer Samuel Hill -- have been placed on administrative leave per department policy. Hill is an eight-year veteran of the force while Osmundson has been with the department since 2012.
In the lead-up to the fatal shooting, Little Rock officers were in the 300 block of President Clinton Avenue about 2:06 a.m. Sunday when they were approached by 29-year-old Charles Phelps, who reported that a man had pointed a gun at him, according to a police report.
Phelps told the officers that he was standing near Ernie Biggs when a man, later identified as Hornibrook, came out of the bar and began saying "racial slurs," according to the report.
Phelps, who is black, said he told Hornibrook that he did not want any trouble, the report said.
Hornibrook began to walk away, but then pointed a pistol at Phelps and said he was going to shoot, Phelps told police.
Phelps ran to several officers and informed them of the situation before identifying Hornibrook, who was standing in the middle of President Clinton Avenue, police said.
Osmundson and Hill told investigators they tried to stop Hornibrook, but he ran west and took a left onto Cumberland Street. Police said they told Hornibrook to stop numerous times.
He fled south on Cumberland Street and the two officers chased him into the alley behind Ernie Biggs, according to the report.
Police said both officers were chasing Hornibrook in the alley when Hornibrook stopped and turned toward officers with a pistol in his hand, "raising it as if to fire at the officers," according to a statement from the department.
Both officers then fired at Hornibrook, according to a police report.
Hornibrook suffered "multiple gunshot wounds" and was taken to the UAMS Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
Hornibrook's death is the second fatal officer-involved shooting in Little Rock this year. Online court records show Hornibrook did not have any felony convictions.
Pete Hornibrook, Michael Hornibrook's uncle, said Monday that his nephew was a generous man and a father of three.
"He was a good father and a good man," he said.
Pete Hornibrook, who serves as the vice chairman of the Little Rock Water Reclamation Commission, described the shooting as a "senseless tragedy" and said his family has received hundreds of calls since his nephew's death.
"It's just hard for us to understand," he said.
Metro on 03/28/2017