Gallatin County Sheriff/Coroner Dan Springer has identified the woman who died after being shot in Bozeman on Thursday, October 17, 2024, as 29-year old Rick Alastor Newman.
Newman died after being shot during an hours-long stand-off with law enforcement officers.
Police say Newman was brandishing a handgun and threatening to harm herself and others.
As is common practice when law enforcement is involved in a shooting, Sheriff Springer requested the assistance of a coroner outside of the Gallatin County jurisdiction. Park County Coroner Al Jenkins conducted the formal coroner investigation.
Bozeman Police Chief Jim Veltkamp said during a news conference on Friday Newman was threatening her mother with a handgun at their home in the area of 15th and Durston. When police arrived, Newman had left the scene with the gun.
Hours later she was found in the Smith's parking lot off 19th and Oak.
“Additional officers arrived, and trained crisis negotiators began communicating with the female, hoping to de-escalate the situation and resolve it peacefully. The female repeatedly raised and lowered the handgun, with less lethal tools being used at least once,” says Veltkamp.
Veltkamp says around 1:45 a.m., Newman put the gun down and backed away, indicating she was giving up. But suddenly, she ran back to the gun and picked it up in a way that concerned officers.
Two officers fired rifles, and two other officers as well as a Sheriff's deputy fired less-lethal weapons at Newman, including, according to the police chief, rubber bullets.
“After the shooting, officers approached as soon as safely possible but she was found deceased,” says Veltkamp.
None of the responding officers were injured and those involved have been placed on administrative leave.
Investigations are currently underway with body-cam and dash-cam footage being reviewed.
Although there is still a lot to be investigated in this incident, I asked Veltkamp if he felt it had to end with Newman’s death.
“From my knowledge, and the fact that they took two hours and 45 minutes trying to resolve it peacefully? That is the absolute last thing that any of them wanted. And seeing them back there after this incident? I promise that was written on everybody’s face,” says Veltkamp.
I asked if there is any sort of therapy offered to those involved.
“We have a wide variety of things we offer them. Various critical incident stress debriefings to try to help them process what they’ve been through. And hopefully, the goal is to make them whole. Back to what they were before they all experienced this event,” says Veltkamp.
