Anchorage woman who died during SWAT team standoff had pointed a rifle at her neighbor, police say

Anchorage Police Chief-designee Bianca Cross speaks astatine a property convention connected June 24, 2024. (Wesley Early/Alaska Public Media)

Anchorage constabulary opportunity a female had pointed a firearm astatine her neighbour and his boy hours earlier she died during a constabulary standoff adjacent Muldoon past Wednesday night. 

Police said Monday that it’s still unclear really nan woman, 58-year-old Lisa Fordyce-Blair, died. But they released immoderate further accusation during an day news convention and successful a criminal title revenge successful nan case.

According to nan complaint, Fordyce-Blair “retreated” to her location Wednesday aft her neighbour called nan police. Officials opportunity cipher was harmed during nan relationship betwixt Fordyce-Blair and her neighbor. Police obtained a warrant to apprehension her for third-degree assault. 

After 2 hours, constabulary said, a SWAT squad was called successful to assist. Fordyce-Blair did not respond to telephone calls aliases requests for her to comply pinch officers made complete a PA system, Anchorage Police Chief-designee Bianca Cross said during a news convention Monday. 

“During this clip officers could perceive her firing shots from wrong nan home,” Cross said. “Ultimately, an serviceman discharged his weapon. During nan consequent hunt of nan residence nan female was recovered deceased.”

Cross said nan autopsy connected Fordyce-Blair was conducted Monday morning, and constabulary officials will merchandise her origin of decease aft nan aesculapian examiner finishes their evaluation. Cross said nan shooting is still nether investigation and could not opportunity whether Fordyce-Blair fired much shots aft nan SWAT squad personnel fired astatine nan home. 

The SWAT squad members were not wearing assemblage cameras, Cross said. Though most officers person been equipped pinch assemblage cameras since nan section finalized its argumentation past year, Cross said nan cameras purchased by nan section were not designed to fresh connected a afloat group of SWAT gear. 

“Therefore nan SWAT officers did not person cameras connected their bodies during past Wednesday’s incident,” Cross said. “The section has been researching assemblage worn cameras designed to activity pinch SWAT cogwheel and we are still successful nan process of determining what cameras would activity best.”

Cross said it’s imaginable that a constabulary vehicle’s dash camera whitethorn person footage of nan shooting, but she said she has not reviewed immoderate of that footage. 

Anchorage constabulary person categorized nan Wednesday incident arsenic an “officer-involved shooting” — nan 4th successful nan metropolis successful little than 2 months.

Anchorage constabulary shot 34-year-old Kristopher Handy connected May 13 aft responding to a home disturbance. Police opportunity Handy pointed a agelong weapon astatine officers anterior to being shot, though information footage from 1 of Handy’s neighbors has called that communicative into question. This was nan first clip constabulary changeable personification while wearing assemblage cameras, sparking demands from nan family for nan merchandise of nan footage.

On June 1, Anchorage constabulary changeable and wounded 22-year-old Kaleb Bourdukofsky aft Bourdukofsky allegedly changeable and killed 25-year-old Diego Joy adjacent a downtown bar. Bourdukofsky is charged pinch execution successful Joy’s death. 

Two days later, Anchorage constabulary changeable and killed 21-year-old Tyler May adjacent an Anchorage elder halfway aft he allegedly pointed a weapon astatine officers who were responding to a shots fired call.