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Jacob Hernandez

Age : 28

Gender : Male

Race : Latino/a/e

Date : 09/15/2021

Location : 2300 block of East Thomas Road

City : Phoenix

County : Maricopa

State : Arizona

Agency : Arizona Department of Public Safety; Maricopa County Adult Probation Department

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Suicide

Event : Suicide under police duress

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

On 09/15/2021, Jacob Hernandez, 28, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound while law enforcement officers were attempting to arrest him at a hotel in the 2300 block of East Thomas Road in Phoenix. The encounter also resulted in the police shooting death of Kenzie Keyes, 30. The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office records Hernandez and Keyes as the two involved people in the September 15 critical incident at approximately 2300 East Thomas Road.

An Arizona Department of Public Safety officer and a Maricopa County Adult Probation officer were working together to locate and arrest Hernandez. Police described Hernandez as a fugitive wanted on felony charges. After officers located Hernandez with Keyes at the hotel, Hernandez and Keyes ran from them.

According to the Phoenix Police Department investigation, Hernandez produced a handgun while police were pursuing him on foot and shot himself in the head. Police did not fire the shot that killed Hernandez. He died at the scene.

Police reported that after Hernandez shot himself, Keyes picked up his handgun. Officers repeatedly ordered Keyes to drop the weapon. Police alleged that Keyes pointed the gun toward officers, who then opened fire and killed her. Hernandez and Keyes therefore constitute two separate fatalities from the same police encounter: Hernandez died by suicide during the attempted arrest, while Keyes was killed by police gunfire.

Phoenix Police Department personnel were not involved in the attempted arrest or the fatal gunfire but assumed responsibility for investigating the incident because the involved personnel were from the Arizona Department of Public Safety and Maricopa County Adult Probation. The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office later recorded the case as cleared, with the incident submitted for review in January 2022 and a decision recorded in November 2022.

Hernandez’s obituary identifies him as Jacob “Jake” Michael Hernandez and confirms that he died on September 15, 2021.

OFFICER BACKGROUND:
No law-enforcement officer fired the shot that killed Hernandez. The law-enforcement personnel involved in the attempted arrest were not identified by name in the available records.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://maricopacountyattorney.org/562/First-Responder-Critical-Incident-Callou
https://patch.com/arizona/phoenix/2-killed-officer-involved-shooting-identified
https://www.abc15.com/news/region-phoenix-metro/central-phoenix/dps-involved-in-shooting-near-24th-street-and-thomas-in-phoenix
https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/west-valley-city-ut/jacob-hernandez-10412216