The Alexandria Police Department in collaboration with the regional Critical Incident Response Team has identified the deceased man in the police shooting incident that occurred on Aug. 12, 2024, at 5101 Maris Avenue, as 61-year-old Paul Gabriel Behan Jr. 

On Monday, Aug. 12, 2024, Alexandria Police Officers responded at approximately 10:46 p.m. to a 911 call from a man asking police to check on the well-being of one of his co-workers. The caller said the co-worker had made very concerning statements about harming himself and advised he was armed with at least two guns. 

Officers, including those with specialized crisis intervention and negotiation training according to the police report, responded within three minutes, and located the man in his Maris Avenue apartment. Police said that the man exited his apartment into a common area stairwell while holding a gun. The police describe the man as a white male in his 60s.

According to the report released by Alexandria police, the officers negotiated with the armed man for more than 35 minutes, while attempting to de-escalate the situation. Through the course of the negotiation, the officers asked the man numerous times to drop his weapon. In response to what police described as a threatening action, at approximately 11:21 p.m., one APD officer discharged their service weapon, striking the man. The man was pronounced dead at the scene. No other weapons were discharged, including the man’s weapon. 

The APD officer, a nine-year veteran and current member of the department’s Special Operations Team, has not been identified. The officer has been placed on administrative leave while an investigation is being conducted by a regional Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT), made up of investigators from other regional law enforcement agencies independent of APD.  

The investigation will be conducted in two parts, according to police. First, CIRT will conduct a criminal use-of-force investigation. Then the APD Office of Professional Responsibility will conduct an administrative inquiry monitored by the Office of the Alexandria Independent Policing Auditor and will coordinate a review of the results of the investigation with Alexandria’s Independent Police Review Board. 

The CIRT was established by Northern Virginia localities in 2021 to investigate critical incidents involving law enforcement officers. At the completion of its investigation, the CIRT may present evidence to the Commonwealth’s Attorney Office or other prosecuting authority for review. The Alexandria Independent Policing Auditor was also at the scene and will monitor the APD’s administrative investigation once the CIRT investigation has concluded. 

Anyone with information is asked to call the APD non-emergency line at 703-746-4444

Source: Alexandria Police Department