St. Paul police shoot man with gun in busy intersection

ST. PAUL, Minn. — A man is in critical condition after St. Paul police officers shot him Monday night.
The shooting happened at University and Snelling avenues on the border of the Hamline-Midway neighborhood.
Just before 7:45 p.m., officers found a man with a gun near Snelling and Charles avenues, according to the St. Paul Police Department.
As officers approached, the man pointed the gun to his head, police said.
Officers began talking with the man, trying to get him to surrender, but he then started walking south down Snelling. Once he reached the Snelling and University area, he began walking around in the intersection, according to police.
Police said officers fired “less lethal” rounds at the man to try and get him to surrender, but he still wouldn’t.
The man then pointed his gun at police, the department said, and that’s when officers shot him. 
Officials say at the time the area was busy with cars and pedestrians. 
“It has been a challenging area. It’s one of our busiest intersections in this city and it has been for years,” Sgt. Mike Ernster with the St. Paul Police Department said. “It has a major artery in the area. Snelling has a rapid bus line through there. We have the Green Line and University just tends to be a very high-volume traffic area.” 
St. Paul police said all officers were wearing body cameras that were working at the time. They have all been put on administrative leave, which is standard procedure. 
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is leading the investigation.
Later Tuesday morning, community groups are gathering to call on police to release the unedited body camera video. St. Paul police say they do plan to release the body camera video in the coming days. 
The corner of Snelling and University has been a point of contention, as many people who live and work there say the area is a hotbed of crime. Earlier this month, community members grilled politicians at a town hall about how to clean up the Hamline-Midway neighborhood.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress, get help from the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. Trained crisis counselors are available 24 hours a day to talk about anything.
In addition, help is available from the National Alliance on Mental Illness, or NAMI. Call the NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264 or text “HelpLine” to 62640. There are more than 600 local NAMI organizations and affiliates across the country, many of which offer free support and education programs.