Police mill around in front of the late Jose Calzada’s house in Roy, Utah last Tuesday.

Opposing Views:

Jose Calzada called a suicide hotline from his home in Roy, Utah, at about 4:00 a.m. on Tuesday morning, but by 11 a.m. he was shot dead by a SWAT team.

After Calzada called the suicide hotline, the SWAT team arrived and negotiated with him for hours (video below).

“At some point those negotiations failed and unfortunately the SWAT team was involved in a shooting, and the subject is now deceased,” Officer Matt Gwynn, public information officer for the Roy Police Department, told Standard.net.

“There were people in the home at the time the [suicide] call was placed,” Officer Gwynn told ABC4 News. “They left the home shortly thereafter.”

There was no hostage situation, but news reports say that something happened in the home’s garage that caused SWAT officers to shoot Calzada.

“It seem like there was one shot, and then a pause, and then four or five shots after that, that were very rapid,” said neighbor Ron Smith. “The pause after the first shot was really brief. After that I went inside and shut the door.”

The Weber County attorney’s office is investigating the shooting. The officers who fired their guns at Calzada have all been placed on administrative leave during the investigation.

The Roy Police Department’s advice to suicidal people struck an ironic and chilling tone.

“We encourage those having suicidal thoughts or tendencies to contact a physician or expert that can talk them through it,” stated officer Gwynn. “In this particular case he attempted to do that, it’s unfortunate and sad that it failed.”

In numerous press reports, Police Spokesman Gwynn is simply quoted verbatim. Although he is obviously being evasive why the police thought it was necessary to fire on Mr. Calzada, the press incompetently fails to insist on that obvious question being answered.