Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Man declaring 'I am the emperor' killed at Colorado governor's office

DENVER (AP) -- Gov. Bill Ritter heard the shots echo in the hallway -- pop, pop, pop.

Just outside his Capitol office, a man who declared "I am the emperor" had been shot and killed by a state trooper when he refused to drop his gun, authorities said. Inside, Ritter -- a former Denver district attorney -- immediately tried to draw on lessons from his old job.

"I handled a lot of different investigations as the DA, and I went into the mode I would have as the DA, which is to separate those people who listened or heard something and those who actually witnessed something," Ritter said Monday a few hours after the incident.

Ritter was not injured.

Authorities said the unidentified man -- described as wearing dark pants and a white shirt -- had at least two verbal confrontations with state troopers in Ritter's security. The man had walked into the reception area of Ritter's office and was being escorted out before he produced a gun and refused orders to put it down, police spokesman Sonny Jackson said.

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