Investigation Underway After OCPD Officers Shoot, Wound Suicidal Man

Three Oklahoma City police officers were place on routine administrative leave on Sunday after they shot a suicidal man on his porch.

Police officials said they shot 61-year-old Ralph Tuggle who was armed and threatening to end his life on the front porch of his elderly mother’s home. 

Tuggle’s daughter told News 9 off-camera on Monday her father was in the Intensive Care Unit at OU Medical Center and they were not sure if he would survive. She said relatives cannot visit Tuggle at the hospital because he is in custody. 

More than a dozen bullet holes covered the front of the home on the corner of Northwest 18th St. and Tulsa Avenue the day after police shot Tuggle. 

“It was approximately 10 a.m. this morning when police were notified of a call,” said Msgt. Gary Knight, Oklahoma City Police Department. “It came in as a 911 call of an armed man threatening suicide.”  

Neighbors were startled out of their homes on a quiet Sunday morning. 

“I heard a huge bang from the front of the house,” said Jeff Hanes, neighbor. “I thought somebody was banging on the front window.” 

Neighbor Jeff Hanes heard the collective rounds fired from three officers, reportedly after commanding Tuggle to drop his gun. 

‘They were screaming at him to drop the gun,” said Hanes. “They’re going to shoot him again.” 

Hanes did not know much about Tuggle, only that he lived with his elderly mother. Tuggle's daughter said the 91-year-old woman was on the porch just before officers opened fire on her son. 

Police called the interaction with Tuggle an armed confrontation and did not say if Tuggle fired at officers. No officers were injured but Tuggle was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. 

“He went straight to surgery once he got there,” said “That’s the best information I have on his condition at this point.” 

Police said the investigation will take several more weeks. The case will be presented to the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office to determine if the shooting was justified.