Members of the Gaver family who allegedly attacked Cottonwood police officers in the Wal-Mart parking lot were charged last week in Yavapai County Superior Court.
The March 21 brawl left one family member dead, another wounded and a police officer shot in the leg.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety, which is investigating the incident, said in a statement that there was a struggle for an officer’s gun and three shots were fired. DPS spokesman Bart Graves declined Tuesday to provide additional details. Earlier, however, Cottonwood Police Sgt. Tod Moore told the Cottonwood Journal Extra the shot that killed 21-year-old Enoch Gaver came from officer Richard Hicks’ gun.
It is unclear whether the shots that wounded Sgt. Jeremy Daniels and David Gaver also came from Hicks’ gun. Moore did not return a phone message seeking clarification.
Graves said, “Our investigation will determine where the gunshots came from.”
The inquiry is ongoing and Graves did not provide a time frame for when it is expected to be completed.
DPS is investigating because it involves a police shooting.
Both Daniels, 31, who is recovering from the gunshot after being released from the hospital, and Hicks, 21, are on administrative leave pending the investigation, a standard procedure in cases that involve a shooting.
David Gaver, 18, was treated for a gunshot wound to the abdomen and discharged into police custody.
To read the full story, see the Wednesday, April 8, edition of the Cottonwood Journal Extra.
