Young mom considers moving after suspect fatally shot by police next door

Julia Gamble’s front door is covered in fake yellow caution tape for Halloween. It makes the real police tape roping off the house and yard next door blend right in.

The young mother from Saskatoon said she couldn’t make it in to work Friday after the “horrifying” events that took place the night before.

Gamble said she arrived home just after 5 p.m. on Thursday.

“It was just a normal day,” she said.

She remembered seeing kids playing at the school playground just across the street from her home.

Gamble said she smoked a cigarette on her front porch before heading into the house to spend time with her family. She said she’s usually diligent about locking her front door, but she forgot Thursday.

Two minutes after she went inside, she said there was yelling coming from outside their home. That’s not totally out of the ordinary for the neighbourhood, but Gamble said she knew something bad was happening when her boyfriend James looked through the window to see what was going on.

“I see his face change immediately. He just looks scared and he’s like, ‘Get down,’ ” Gamble remembered.

She said she grabbed her son and they hit the floor.

“I should never have to do something like that,” the mom said, reflecting on the memory.

Her boyfriend saw two people with guns pointed at their window, she said.

Gamble also peeked through the window and saw a person pointing a gun at the home. Scared, the three made their way to the back of their house, away from their two large front windows. Gamble said she called her dad to tell him what was happening.

“We’re in the back room and we hear the shots go off,” Gamble reported. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, there’s a shooter.’ ”

She said she heard five gunshots, and wondered if the events were over at that point. Gamble said she was terrified about her unlocked front door. She said she was worried about her children, and the two children who live next door.

It was in the house next door where police reportedly shot and killed an armed suspect that evening.

Eventually, a police officer knocked on Gamble’s door and told the family they needed to get out. Gamble said they realized the people holding guns in their yard were police officers wearing civilian clothes.

Police told Gamble’s family the suspect had cut through her yard to get to the house next door. Gamble said she remembered seeing a scared-looking female officer in their yard, who was shaking.

“(Police) make us jump our fence and throw my baby over the fence,” Gamble said.

She said her father was able to pick her family up and take them to stay with him for the next few hours. Around 9 p.m., the family decided to return to their home. They had nothing except Gamble’s cellphone and the clothes they were wearing, she said.

Gamble said she wasn’t expecting the house next to hers to become a full-blown crime scene.

Gamble said her family feels safe enough in their home while police are investigating — officers told them they’d be there for the next few days – but she said she plans to call her landlord soon. The young mom said she can’t see the family continuing to live in the home now, or letting her son play in the yard, as he always has before.

“I’m even scared now, because somebody died there,” she said.

Police update

Troy Cooper, Saskatoon’s police chief, shared more information about the shooting on Friday afternoon in a written statement.

He said the Saskatoon Police Service’s Guns and Gangs Unit became aware late on Thursday afternoon that a 36-year-old man who was wanted by La Loche RCMP was in the 1300 block of Avenue E North, and was armed with a gun. The man had removed an electronic monitoring device he was ordered to wear by a court.

According to the chief, the man pointed his gun at officers both inside and outside the multi-unit home where the shooting took place. Officers entered the home to keep those inside safe, Cooper said. When they did, the officers were confronted by the suspect and fatally shot him.

Aside from the suspect, no other injuries were reported.

“We are extremely fortunate that our officers and the bystanders were not physically harmed,” Cooper said.

“This is an example of the unpredictable and dangerous situations our officers face far too often.  They must rely on their extensive training and professionalism to make split-second decisions.”

The Regina Police Service is investigating the incident.

Saskatoon police said the police presence in the 100 block of Avenue Q South — connected to the officer-involved shooting — has ended, and traffic restrictions in the area have been lifted.