San Diego police kill man who pointed a gun at them, officials say

San Diego police officers Tuesday afternoon shot and killed a 39-year-old man in downtown who had pointed a gun at them and refused demands to drop the weapon, police said.

The man had been “causing a disturbance” and blocking traffic in the Gaslamp Quarter when he was confronted by two motorcycle officers, Capt. David Nisleit told reporters.

The man fled on foot with the officers chasing him, Nisleit said. He turned on the officers and pointed a “large-frame semiautomatic pistol,” Nisleit said.

One officer fired, with the man falling to the ground, Nisleit said. The man then sat up and again pointed the gun, causing the second officer to fire, he said.

The officers felt “an immediate threat to their lives,” Nisleit said.

The man was taken to UC San Diego Medical Center where he was pronounced dead. Preliminary investigation showed that he was wanted on a felony armed robbery warrant from Virginia, police said.

Neither officer had activated his body-camera, Nisleit said. But several bystanders captured the incident on their cameras, he said.

The dead man was later identified as Lamontez Jones. The gun pointed at officers was a replica, police determined.

The officers were Scott Thompson, a 30-year veteran, and Gregory Lindstrom, a 25-year veteran. Neither was hurt in the incident.