Community has prayer action for Ira Wright, killed in an officer-involved shooting

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) - Sunday, a prayer action was held in North Rapid to support the family of Ira Wright, and for anyone who recently lost a loved one.

Wright was involved in an officer-involved shooting on Jan. 19. He was shot and killed by a Rapid City police officer around 10 p.m. According to the Rapid City Police Department Chief Don Hedrick, the officers went to the area of Surfwood Drive and Maple Street where they encountered a person who took off running from them. During the chase, police say, the person reportedly pulled a gun on one of the officers.

“The family deserves the answers that they seek, and our people deserve a lot more then being killed on the streets, by the police. And we hope for peace and compassion for people,” Natalie Stites Means, organizer of prayer action.

The South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating the shoot and could have a report on it by mid February.

According to the South Dakota Attorney General there were at least 13 officer involved shootings in the state last year.

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