Eugene Police Use Deadly Force Against Armed Man Outside School

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Brian Bull

A custodial dispute turned deadly at the Cascade Middle School Friday morning in Eugene. The school was put on lockout as a safety measure.

Editor's note: Since this story was published, Oregon State Police have identified the deceased male as 30-year-old Charles Frederick Landeros of Eugene. 

Around 10:30am, Eugene Police responded to a call involving an adult male who came to the school.  Lieutenant Jennifer Bills says as officers were escorting him off of the grounds, he pulled a gun.

EPD Lt. Jennifer Bills, speaking to reporters outside Cascade Middle School in the early afternoon of January 11th, 2019.
Credit Brian Bull / KLCC

“During the struggle, the subject was shot and is now deceased," said Bills.  "This incident occurred outside the school, not inside.  All students and staff and officers are safe and unharmed.”

A yellow tarp outside the entrance marked where the man fell. Parents waited at a neighboring church to be united with their children. Among them was Thomas Alberti.

“It’s a little nerve-wracking, you know you think you take your kids to school, that that would be a safe place for them to learn," Alberti told KLCC.  "But apparently that’s no longer the case.”

LeeAnn Gibson is a local caregiver, who watched the evacuation of students from across the street.  She says she knows several students and faculty.

“I have been on Facebook Live and asking if everybody is out safe," she said.  "All the kids, faculty, and everybody is accounted for.

Students who wished to leave school early were allowed to, and met their parents down the street at St. Mark's Catholic Church.
Credit Brian Bull / KLCC

"They are definitely going to have to up their security, maybe checking backpacks, metal detector.”

Per state law, the Interagency Deadly Force Investigation Team is conducting the investigation.

Copyright 2019, KLCC.

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Brian Bull is an assistant professor of journalism at the University of Oregon, and remains a contributor to the KLCC news department. He began working with KLCC in June 2016.   In his 27+ years as a public media journalist, he's worked at NPR, Twin Cities Public Television, South Dakota Public Broadcasting, Wisconsin Public Radio, and ideastream in Cleveland. His reporting has netted dozens of accolades, including four national Edward R. Murrow Awards (22 regional),  the Ohio Associated Press' Best Reporter Award, Best Radio Reporter from  the Native American Journalists Association, and the PRNDI/NEFE Award for Excellence in Consumer Finance Reporting.