The city of Sedona experienced what is generally believed to be the first officer-involved fatal shooting in its history on Monday, Jan. 20.
According to the city’s timeline of events, the initial call came in at 1:26 p.m. A caller reported an unknown man was in the Newcastle Lane area with a machete and a stick, reportedly cutting himself with the machete.
Police arrived at the scene at 1:29 p.m.
Police fired shots at 1:32 p.m. and called for the Sedona Fire District.
According to radio traffic, SFD requested a medevac helicopter with a response time of about 18 minutes, but the helicopter was cancelled shortly thereafter.
At 1:40 p.m., Sedona Fire District declared the individual deceased. A coroner was called in from the Coconino County Medical Examiner’s Office.
We are still receiving information from the city of Sedona, but facts are coming in piecemeal as they are confirmed by law enforcement and released to the public and the media.
All too often we in the public expect police officers and government officials to immediately know all the details about a crime.
Unfortunately, by the time police officers, paramedics, firefighters or rescue workers arrive on the scene of a crime, tragedy or disaster, they are at the tail-end of a long story. To determine what happened, investigators and detectives then must piece together what happened and what led to the incident, accident or tragedy that necessitated their arrival.
Yet rumors are flying wildly on social media from full-time and part-time residents. There are also many online users who do not live anywhere near Sedona who are commenting their views because they want to interject their opinions about the incident, or positive or negative views of law enforcement or simply because they want to troll our readers.
Others are suggesting their mental health diagnosis of the man who was shot with no evidence beyond what we have reported above.
While we have spoken with law enforcement and city officials and done our investigation into the man who was shot, we are waiting for official confirmation before releasing these details. While we journalists are eager to report what we know the moment we hear it, it behooves us to err on the side of accuracy rather than expediency and to always back up the facts in our story with a source, speaker, document or official so in case there is any question about the validity of what we report, we can cite the individual or organization that provided it.
The damage that can be done by rumors or social media posting, or the kind of inaccurate or sloppy reporting from outside news agencies or fly-by-night “media outlets,” can last a long time.
In a small community, this damage can take years to rebuild, which is why as the local newspaper we always strive for accuracy and accountability. Once the news cameras leave, our residents still have to live here with each other.
We will report the details of this incident as we learn them and can confirm them with authorities.
This officer-involved shooting is not the only incident we are following for our readers. The house fire in the Chapel area, developments and projects and various criminal trials and lawsuits are all on our docket and we report on them as facts emerge and develop.
As this case develops, we will report the facts to our readers.
Christopher Fox Graham
Managing Editor
Editor’s Note: The 407-page Arizona Department of Public Safety investigation report into the shooting of Jonathan David Messare on Jan. 20 by two Sedona police officers was released Aug. 20 is now available in its entirety on our website. Two police dash cam videos from the scene are also available on our website and YouTube.com account.
