On June 15th at around 8:15 p.m., police were dispatched to the area of 1130 Holcomb Avenue for a disturbance. A female reporting party had called dispatch to report a male threatening her. As officers arrived, police learned that the male, later identified as Dustin Long age 33 of Rapid City, had left the residence on foot. Police spotted long in the area of Adams Street and Blaine Avenue. The responding officer exited his patrol vehicle and asked to speak with Long. Long immediately lifted up the front of his shirt and pulled out a large chef’s knife. He was ordered to drop the knife several times, but refused to comply. Long then lunged several steps toward the officer with the knife in his hand before running from the area. He then encountered another officer who issued verbal commands to drop the knife. He made a fast movement toward this officer with the knife. Several beanbag rounds from the less lethal shotgun were deployed at Long before he began running toward a residence in the 800 block of Blaine Avenue. He vaulted a fence into the backyard. Another less-lethal beanbag was deployed. It struck Long and caused him to drop the knife. Officers were able to safely approach Long and place him in handcuffs. He was walked back to an awaiting patrol car. When it was time to seat him in the back seat, he refused to sit inside. He was placed in the WRAP safety restraint system before being transported to the Pennington County Jail. While on the way to the jail, Long made threats to the transporting officer. He was ultimately placed under arrest for two counts of Aggravated Assault on Law Enforcement, Obstruction, Threatening Law Enforcement, and Disorderly Conduct.
The outcome of this situation is a testament to the high degree of training our officers receive. Officers were able to use less-lethal means to safely detain an individual exhibiting dangerous behavior with a deadly weapon who refused to listen to officer commands.
