Inquest scheduled in police shooting that left teen dead

A Clark County coroner’s inquest jury will be convened Nov. 6 on the officer-involved shooting of a teenager who was killed by Las Vegas police last month as he held a knife near his mother’s throat.

According to the coroner’s office, the inquest will begin at 9 a.m. at the Regional Justice Center.

Tanner Chamberlain, 15, was shot in the head Sept. 29 by Officer Derek Colling.

Colling, an officer with the Metropolitan Police Department’s Southeast Area Command, had responded to a domestic disturbance call at the Sunridge Apartment Homes at 4855 Vegas Valley Dr., near Nellis Boulevard, authorities said.

Police arrived to find a mother and her son fighting. Chamberlain was holding a knife in his hand, according to police. When officers approached the pair, the son grabbed the mother by her shoulder and placed a knife to her neck, police said.

Chamberlain did not respond to officers’ request to drop the knife and made a sudden movement, “as if he was going to injure his mother with a knife,” according to police.

Chamberlain’s mother, Evie Oquendo, disputed parts of the police account. She said her son was bipolar — a disorder characterized by mood swings that can be extreme — and that she never felt her life was threatened. She said police never negotiated with her son, only telling him once to drop the knife. She added that she told police not to shoot.

The exchange with police only lasted 30 seconds, Oquendo said.

The fatal shooting was Colling’s second shooting in four years.

In July 2006, Colling was one of five officers who fired 29 rounds at a domestic violence suspect outside a Circle K. Police said the suspect, 43-year-old Shawn Collins, pulled a revolver from his back pocket after being confronted by officers.

Collins died at the scene. A Clark County coroner’s inquest jury determined the officer’s actions were justified.

Colling has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the inquest. A jury will determine if Colling’s actions were justified, excusable or criminal.

Contact reporter Antonio Planas at aplanas@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638.