Citrus Heights police identify armed man killed by officers, say he used revolver
The armed man shot and killed by Citrus Heights police Tuesday evening by Sunrise Mall has been identified, as well as the gun police say he used to shoot at officers and a K-9.
Authorities identified the deceased suspect as Grayson Schuessler, 26, of Orangevale, according to a news release from the Citrus Heights Police Department.
Police say Schuessler used a .357 magnum revolver to fire at officers and was in possession of 20 additional rounds for that weapon, as well as a black airsoft gun resembling a semi-automatic handgun, the news release said.
Schuessler had been on formal probation resulting from a 2016 felony elder abuse case in Sacramento County, court records show. The Citrus Heights Police Department said its only prior contact with the suspect was a 2014 traffic stop.
The department says the suspect opened fire “immediately” as officers arrived at the scene near the 8000 block of Greenback Lane in response to reports of shots fired.
Officers returned fire, shooting and killing Schuessler. It remains unknown how many officers total were involved in the incident and how many of them fired at Schuessler, but the involved officers have been placed on paid administrative leave per department policy, police said.
One of the rounds fired by the suspect passed through the “slack” of one officer’s uniform shirt, but that officer was not injured.
Police initially believed that a police dog was shot in the face by the suspect. But in an updated statement Wednesday afternoon, the Citrus Heights Police Department said the K-9’s face had actually been covered in the suspect’s blood, and that the dog was not injured.
In other media statements Monday, police said one bullet traveled through the windshield of a bystander, and another pierced through the window of Macy’s at Sunrise Mall, which was occupied with shoppers. Neither bullet struck or injured anyone, according to the news releases.
This story was originally published July 11, 2019 at 8:06 AM.
