Man shot by Dayton police after charging officer with knife found guilty

• Jury trial: A jury found Otto Coleman, 79, guilty of felonious assault of a peace officer in Montgomery County Common Pleas Court.

• Not guilty: Coleman was found not guilty of resisting arrest.

What was he accused of?

• Charging officer: Coleman allegedly ran at a Dayton police officer while he was armed with a knife on Aug. 11, 2024.

• Officers dispatched: Police responded to the 700 block of North Broadway Street after Montgomery County Regional Dispatch received a call that appeared to come from Summit Behavioral Healthcare in Cincinnati.

It wasn’t clear what the caller was trying to report, Dayton police Chief Kamran Afzal said.

Dispatchers tried to call back five times but couldn’t get additional details.

Dispatch put in a call for Dayton officers to respond to a building on North Broadway Street that served as a residence and a mosque.

• Property searched: Two officers arrived on scene, and one went around the back of the building.

An officer was heard on body camera footage asking if anyone called police.

When the officer walked toward a shed in the backyard he found a man, later identified as Coleman, standing between the side of the shed and the fence.

• Confrontation with officer: The officer can be heard telling Coleman to drop a knife at least four times on body camera footage.

Coleman started to approach the officer and then began running toward him. The officer then shot Coleman.

Coleman was hit in the chest, arm and leg, Afzal said.

The officer who shot Coleman had been with the department for two years received two written commendations and a letter of appreciation. A grand jury declined to indict the officer.

• Previous cases: Coleman was convicted of attempted murder in Maryland in 1973.

He was found not guilty by reason of insanity for assault of a peace officer in a 2000 case in Montgomery County and granted conditional release. Coleman successfully completed his outpatient treatment, according to court records.

In 2011, Coleman was sentenced to 12.5 years in prison for an assault of a peace officer, aggravated robbery and vandalism case in Montgomery County.

What happens next?

• Sentencing: Coleman’s sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 13.