‘She was a sweet, kind person’: Adelaide apartment resident describes woman killed by police this week
Neighbors at the downtown apartment complex remember the victim as “sweet and kind” as housing managers decline to comment on the active investigation into Tuesday’s fatal standoff.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - Neighbors at a downtown apartment complex are mourning a resident they described as a “sweet, kind person,” a day after she was shot and killed by an Anchorage police officer.
The fatal encounter on Tuesday afternoon at the Adelaide apartments has left residents of the complex shocked and seeking answers about a woman they knew for her large dog, Hercules, and for sharing food with her neighbors.
“She was a sweet, kind person. She had issues, she had little issues, but she was sweet and kind to me,” said resident Christopher Williams, who expressed disbelief that his neighbor was armed. “That right there, I was surprised. I was surprised by that.”
Anchorage police have not confirmed the woman’s identity.
On Wednesday afternoon, NeighborWorks Alaska, the non-profit housing organization that operates the facility, declined to release details about the resident or the shooting.
“Out of respect for those involved and the integrity of the ongoing investigation, we cannot comment on details that may lead to speculation that may harm our residents, staff, and the overall investigation,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
The shooting occurred Tuesday in the 200 block of East Ninth Avenue after staff at the complex called 911 at 1:34 p.m. to report that the woman was threatening suicide and had pointed a gun at them.
Police officers, crisis negotiators, and a SWAT team responded to the downtown neighborhood, which sits across the street from Denali Montessori School. People in the school, which was serving as a primary election polling place on Tuesday, were advised to shelter in place for roughly 40 minutes during the standoff.
“The cars, they just had the whole block off, you know,” resident Brandon Moore said of the tactical response. “The SWAT Team had helmets, it was just like you would see on TV. You know, just, pretty aggressive.”
Police Chief Sean Case said the standoff ended after approximately an hour when the woman pointed a gun out of her third-floor window toward officers and the nearby school. An officer fired a single shot, striking her in the upper body. She was pronounced dead inside the building.
Case said the incident, which was captured on dash cams and body-worn cameras, was a tragic end to a situation police had hoped to resolve peacefully.
The incident is the seventh officer-involved shooting in Anchorage this year, and the 19th since the start of 2024. The shooting remains under investigation.
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. You can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, or call the Alaska Careline at 1-877-266-4357.
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