Officer, suspect in fatal Hamilton shooting identified

The Butler County Coroner’s Office and the Hamilton Police Department on Monday released the names of the officer and the suspect involved in Saturday’s fatal shooting.

Officer Steven McFall, 41, shot and killed Michael Wilson-Salzl, 24, at about 3 p.m. Saturday in the parking lot of Knollwood Crossing apartments, police said, after Wilson-Salzl engaged in a “confrontation” while carrying a butcher knife.

FIRST REPORT: Man confronts officer with large knife

McFall was responding to reports of a shooting at the apartment complex when Wilson-Salzl approached him with a “large, fixed-blade knife,” according to Hamilton Police Chief Craig Bucheit.

Wilson-Salzl died of gunshot wounds, according to the Butler County Coroner’s Office. The Hamilton Police Department said it has been in contact with Wilson-Salzl’s family.

McFall, who is a 17-year veteran if the Hamilton Police Department, has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

Bucheit told our media partner WCPO that there were no signs of the initial shooting reported to police, and the details surrounding that call are under investigation.

McFall responded to the call alone because he was the only officer available, Bucheit said, and there were no other officers on the scene when McFall fired his weapon.

NEIGHBOR: Man lived in apartment complex where he was shot by officer

The Journal-News requested 911 calls from the incident placed to the Butler County Sheriff’s Office dispatch center. In response, Deputy Chief Anthony Dwyer said the sheriff’s office is submitting the calls to the county prosecutor for guidance before releasing them.

McFall was not wearing a body camera at the time of the shooting, but his cruiser did have a camera.

Investigators will review that cruiser camera, Bucheit said.

Uniformed police officers in Hamilton have been testing body cameras since last year.

CLOSER LOOK: Benefits, drawbacks of police cameras still being debated

The results of the investigation will go to the Butler County prosecutor and grand jury, who will determine if McFall will face any charges.

Several police departments are involved in the investigation, Bucheit said.

EXCLUSIVE: Officer-involved shooting database

Butler County commissioners said in 2016 they wanted the sheriff’s office to host a training exercise on officer-involved shootings.

“We’re willing to write the check,” commissioner Don Dixon said in October. “That’s something that is money well spent, to save potentially millions of dollars in litigation and lives.”

Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones told commissioners in October he would have a plan to them within a month.

The Journal-News reached out to the sheriff’s office Monday for the status of that plan and was told some training plans have been put into place, but more information was not immediately available.

There have been two other officer-involved shootings in Hamilton since 2015.

OFFICER-INVOLVED SHOOTINGS: Police cleared in recent local incidents

An 18-year-old fired an AK-47 at Hamilton police Officer Chad Stafford in 2014 before the wounded officer killed him in a shootout.

Stafford was shot in the head by Brandon Keeler, who was firing shots from a civilian-model AK-47 rifle at 11th Street and Sipple Avenue.

The teen, who left notes indicating he wanted to die at the hands of police, was shot and killed when Stafford returned fire.

A Butler County grand jury cleared Stafford of any criminal wrong doing in the shootout.

In August 2016, Officer Kevin Ruhl shot and killed a 34-year-old man in a robbery attempt at a Hamilton Walgreens.

During the robbery, the man placed a 10-inch knife to the throat of the pharmacist and demanded drugs and money. He was shot when he charged the officer.

The incident was captured on surveillance video, and Ruhl was cleared by a grand jury of any criminal wrongdoing.

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