LAKEWOOD, Colo. — Lakewood police say a man fatally shot himself after officers tried to pull him over on eastbound W. 6th Avenue on Sunday afternoon.
John Romero, public information officer with Lakewood Police Department, said just after 3:10 p.m. Sunday, police tried to pull over a driver on eastbound W. 6th Avenue. Police said they had received a report the person was involved in a road rage menacing incident.
The person, who was later identified as 18-year-old Jesse James Brown, continued driving down the highway for several exits but did not speed up, Romero said. Police learned around this time that the vehicle Brown was driving had been stolen.
Just east of Wadsworth Boulevard, Brown pulled over. He yelled at police and concealed his hands, police said.
Police said negotiations with him failed and they deployed pepper ball rounds toward Brown and into the vehicle.
Shortly afterward, police heard gunshots from within the car. No officers fired their weapons, the department said.
Police approached the vehicle and found the man with a gunshot wound.
Brown was transferred to a hospital, where he died of his injuries, police said.
He had several active warrants out for his arrest. A stolen firearm was found in the vehicle, police said.
Two lanes of eastbound W. 6th Avenue near Wadsworth Boulevard through Sheridan Boulevard were closed during the investigation. The highway reopened around 7 p.m. Westbound lanes were closed for a short time, but reopened around 4:20 p.m.
Romero said this marked the second shooting on a highway in less than 24 hours.
No other details were available as of 1:30 p.m. Monday.