Man killed by Vancouver police Feb. 28 was armed with replica pistols

Investigators looking into the Feb. 28 fatal officer-involved shooting of a 29-year-old homeless man determined the guns he brandished at Vancouver police were realistic-looking black and chrome replica pistols.

Two officers shot and killed Michael Eugene Pierce west of downtown Vancouver after he reportedly pointed the two replica firearms at himself, passers-by and police.

Officers responded around 4:45 p.m. to West 12th and Jefferson streets for a report of an armed person. Shortly after, officers yelled shots had been fired and a man was down, with a firearm by his feet, according to emergency radio traffic monitored at The Columbian.

Officers Christopher Douville and Andrew Dunbar fired their weapons, and neither was injured, according to Vancouver police. They have been placed on critical incident leave, which is standard department protocol in an officer-involved shooting.

At a candlelight vigil last week, friends said Pierce was known to carry brightly colored pellet guns that he treated as toys.

The Regional Major Crimes Team, led by the Clark County Sheriff’s Office, described the guns as replicas, and provided photos of the firearms collected at the scene compared with real firearms. The photos were included in a news release sent out by the Vancouver Police Department.

The shooting investigation is ongoing, and once finished, the findings will be sent to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for review.

“Nothing further is releasable at this time,” the news release said.

Pierce’s family said he was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia as a teen and had stopped taking his medication.

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