Surprise, Arizona — On March 28, 2023, The Surprise Police Department received a call of a male refusing to leave the parking lot of a local business. The officer walked up to the vehicle and spoke to the man, 28-year-old Joseph Martin through the open driver side rear door. Martin began yelling at the officer, as the officer asked him questions. At one point, the officer asked him if he had any weapons in the vehicle and the man yelled, “I am the weapon”, and later began to yell “you are all pedophiles”. The officer told Martin several times, that he needed to leave the parking lot. The officer requested another police unit, to respond to the call.
While the first officer continued to try and speak with Martin, a uniform Sergeant arrived and the sergeant also attempted to engage Martin in conversation. Soon thereafter, Martin began to scream at the officers and tried to close the car door, while he was still inside the vehicle. The officer and Sergeant, prevented the door from closing and attempted to remove Martin from the vehicle. As the first officer reached towards Martin, he yelled that he had a gun. As he yelled this, Martin reached his right hand, toward his waistband, at the same time Martin grabbed the officer’s holster. This is when the officer-involved shooting occurred. Martin was removed from the vehicle and officers attempted life-saving measures, until the fire department arrived. Martin died at the scene. During the investigation, a handgun was found in the man’s right front pants pocket.
News by Breaking911
