SANTA MARIA - Santa Maria Police shot and killed one of their own officers after a shootout early Saturday morning.
Your Central Coast News obtained exclusive video of the scene early this morning near McElhaney and Broadway.
According to police, the officer was the subject of an internal criminal investigation for allegations of sexual misconduct against a 17-year-old girl.
Around 1:10 a.m., officers attempted to arrest him while he was on duty when gunfire was exchanged.
"This is a very tragic and unfortunate situation that unfolded very rapidly and the results are something we are going to have to deal with," said Chief Dan Macagni of the Santa Maria Police Department.
Santa Maria Police said the officer pulled out a gun and shot at them when they tried to arrest him.
One officer responded by shooting him once.
The suspect, whose name has not been released pending notification of family, was rushed to Marian Medical Center and later pronounced dead from his injuries.
"Amazing, crazy, scary," said Andrew Myers of Santa Maria, who lives just blocks away from the crime scene.
"That's just crazy," said Jessica Trujillo of Santa Maria. "This side of town has just gotten really bad, just this part in general like right in that area there has been so many things going on."
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's office said it will be investigating the shooting before handing it over to the District Attorney's office.
