The security guard whom SFPD officers fatally shot in a bizarre incident two weeks ago appeared to pull a gun and move to aim it at officers as they were attempting to detain him, as seen in bodycam footage.
As is protocol with officer-involved shootings, the SFPD held a virtual town hall meeting Monday afternoon that was broadcast on the city's YouTube channel. Video clips shared at the meeting included surveillance footage that showed the inciting incident, hours before the police shooting, in which the suspect, identified as Peter Hodge of Lodi, recklessly drove his Chevy Yukon down a busy sidewalk near Union Square around 6:30 pm on December 19 as he chased a delivery man on a motorized bicycle.
"Me and my friend just got hit by a car exiting Chipotle, they drove through the sidewalk…They ran over her and then ran over the whole sidewalk," said one young woman in 911 audio.
In the footage, the SUV, which was tricked out with flashing lights to imitate a police vehicle, knocks the delivery guy off his bike, and he flees in fear into a nearby parking garage. Hodge can be seen calmly getting out of the SUV and trying to collect the man's things — he attempts to put the bike in the back of his SUV, but it appears too large, so he leaves it there, and takes the man's bag.
Pedestrians can be seen getting knocked to the ground as he drove past.
Police found the vehicle parked outside the Christian Dior store hours later, where Hodge may have been employed as an independent contractor guarding the store at night.
Officers can be heard beforehand discussing approaching the Yukon, where they say they saw Hodge sitting with at least two firearms.
The bodycam footage shows Hodge standing on the sidewalk as officers yell at him. Initially, his arms in the air and he is moving around, while he is being told to put his hands on his head and to stop moving.
He can be heard saying, "What the fuck are you worried about?" as the officers shout commands. A round can be heard being shot — possibly a BolaWrap restraint device, which turned out not to be effective, and the SFPD says a beanbag round was shot as well.
At that point, Hodge can be seen walking away down the sidewalk, and then reaching for something in his waistband. Officers say Hodge then took a firing stance and held a handgun with two hands, aiming at officers in the street.
Multiple officers then fired on him as some shouted "red light!"
The DA's office has not yet commented on the incident.
Previously: Guy Killed By SF Police Was a Security Guard With a Gun Fetish Who Hated Gun Laws, Liberal California
