READING, Pa. (AP) - Authorities have released the name of a man shot and killed by a police officer in eastern Pennsylvania after a report of threats at a neighbor’s backyard barbecue.
Berks County authorities said Reading officers responded to a report that 62-year-old Michael Stoudt had pointed a rifle over his backyard fence at the group, which included half a dozen children. A witness said he was upset about someone smoking on the property.
Police went to Stoudt’s home and found him on the porch with a shotgun. They said he refused to drop the weapon and instead pointed it in their direction, and an officer fired several times. Stoudt was pronounced dead at the scene just after 9 p.m. Friday. The county district attorney’s office is investigating.
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