District police have identified the man shot and killed by an officer moments after his alleged involvement in a drive-by shooting along Georgia Avenue in Northwest Saturday afternoon.
On Sunday, D.C. Police identified the deceased as 31-year-old Kevin Hartgraves-Shird, of Southeast, D.C.
According to a news release, Hartgraves-Shird was shot after police pursued the vehicle he was in, a white sedan, from the scene of an apparent drive-by shooting that took place moments earlier near the corner of Georgia Avenue and Longfellow Street, Northwest.
Officers said they pursued the sedan to the intersection of 2nd and Madison Streets in Northwest, where two other occupants of the vehicle fled the vehicle and the area.
Police said an MPD officer observed Hartgraves-Shird was armed with a handgun and confronted him. After he did not comply with the officer’s orders, the officer fired his weapon, striking Hartgraves-Shird.
In the news release, MPD shared a picture of a firearm recovered from the scene that they say belonged to the suspect.
The suspect was transported by DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead, according to the news release.
The shooting, who has not been identified, was not hurt in the exchange. MPD says he has been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation. Body-worn camera footage from this incident is currently under review.
Police say they recovered four firearms from the scene, including one that police believe is an automatic weapon.
At a press conference near the shooting scene late Saturday afternoon, MPD Executive Assistant Chief Ashan Benedict laid out the sequence of events the MPD believes led to the shooting.
Benedict said police initially responded to reports of shots fired around the corner of Longfellow Street and Georgia Avenue, Northwest.
According to those initial reports, around 4 p.m. Saturday, two vehicles that were heading northbound on Georgia Avenue opened fire on a group walking along Longfellow Street, who reportedly returned fire.
Witnesses on the scene reported seeing “a vehicle with multiple guns being brandished,” Benedict said.
Two people in the group were wounded in that exchange and were later taken to the hospital with injuries, Benedict said. They were expected to survive.
A white sedan that was seen during that shooting fled the area, and police pursued it to nearby Madison Street, where the confrontation between the officer and Hartgraves-Shird took place and the shooting occurred.
Police say other people in the white sedan had already fled the car and the scene when the confrontation took place.
Police say they are looking for the white sedan’s other passengers, who fled the scene, as well as two dark sedans that may have also been involved with the shooting on Georgia Avenue.
“We’ve had a few rough days here since Wednesday,” Benedict said. Since then, there have been 13 shootings, 21 victims and five deaths across the District.
Anyone with more information should call D.C. police at 202-727-9099.
WTOP’s Jessica Kronzer contributed to this report.
