Suspect killed in Northern Colorado rollover crash and police shooting identified

The suspect, who is alleged shot a police officer on Sunday in northern Colorado before he was shot by police has been identified.

Fort Collins police responded to a single-vehicle rollover crash around 12:40 p.m. near the intersection of Mountain Avenue and Bryan Avenue. When officers arrived, a man – later identified as 42-year-old Clayton Pierce – was standing next to his car with a gun, the police department said in a news release Monday.

Pierce fired at police, hitting an officer whose identity has not yet been released, police said. Officers returned fire, but Pierce ran into Grandview Cemetery. Officers found him in the cemetery, where Pierce exchanged fire with police again. A SWAT team arrived and officers rendered medical aid to Pierce. He was then taken to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.

Police did not say whether Pierce was hit during the initial shooting or in the cemetery or what type of firearm he was carrying. However, investigators believe Pierce had multiple firearms on him.

The officer who was hit has since been released from the hospital and is recovering, the department said.

Several parked cars were hit by gunfire during the shooting. Police do not believe anyone else was in the car with Pierce when it crashed, but said he had two dogs with him. One was found, but the other – a pit bull – remained missing.

The Eighth Judicial Critical Incident Response Team and the Larimer County Sheriff’s Office are currently investigating the shooting.

According to court records, Pierce’s criminal history spans at least two decades and spans almost entirely throughout Larimer County.

More serious convictions include a 2006 conviction for aggressive driving while license revoked, a prior 2007 conviction for possession of a firearm, a 2011 incident in which he was charged with kidnapping, menacing and drug trafficking – for which he was sentenced to 12 years in prison for the drug offense – and a 2020 conviction for drunk driving and allusion to reckless conduct, for which he was sentenced to two years in prison.

In 2020, he was named “Larimer County’s Most Wanted” by the Sheriff’s Office because he was wanted at the time on a warrant for drunk driving and misdemeanor reckless conduct.