Details are slowly beginning to emerge surrounding the April 26 police shooting in Craig and the subsequent reinstatement of the the Craig officer who reportedly shot the victim who was allegedly holding a weapon.

Last week, it was reported that Craig police officer Dalton Caudell had returned to active duty after initially being placed on paid administrative leave following the incident. His reinstatement occurred prior to the completion of an investigation by the 14th Judicial Circuit’s Critical Incident Response Team.

“There are multiple investigations that start immediately. One of them is criminal against the suspect. One of them is internal against the officer,” said Craig Police Chief Mike Cochran when asked last Thursday why Caudell had been reinstated before the 14th Judicial District’s findings were released.

“And then, amongst all of that, we have to offer legal counsel to the officer. We have to get the crisis team in contact with the officer. So, there are multiple facets,” added Cochran.

Caudell shot Craig resident Troy Wade Curtis Jr., 36, the morning of April 26, according to Craig City Attorney Heather Cannon.

Following the shooting, the officer was placed on paid administrative leave as part of standard protocol for the Craig Police Department, according to an April 26 news release from the police department.

“An internal review will be conducted separately from the ongoing criminal investigation,” states the department’s April 26 news release.

Caudell was identified as the involved officer on May 1 in another news release from the police department. The victim’s identification came on May 12, two weeks following the shooting, after Craig Press staff contacted Cannon.

At approximately 8:43 a.m. April 26, Craig police officers responded to a report at the address of a male subject allegedly armed with a handgun, according to a news release issued later that day by Craig police.

The initial call to law enforcement was made regarding suicide threats, according to the Colorado State Patrol incident log filed April 26.

“Shots were exchanged between the subject and law enforcement,” the April 26 release from Craig police stated. “The subject was struck during the exchange, and officers immediately rendered medical aid until paramedics arrived on scene.”

Curtis Jr., who owns the home at 730 Ashley Road, allegedly shot his weapon before Caudell, according to 14th Judicial District Attorney Matt Karzen. It is not clear who Curtis Jr. shot at and no further information about the circumstances of the incident have been provided by officials.

Karzen added that Curtis Jr. was the only person involved in the shooting who “suffered a gunshot wound.”

As of May 13, Curtis Jr. had been released from the hospital and “returned home,” according to Karzen.

On April 28, Police Chief Mike Cochran said the Craig Police Department was not involved with the investigation related to the shooting, per Critical Incident Response Team protocol, and directed all questions regarding the shooting to the Grand County Sheriff’s Office, the agency conducting the investigation.

The 14th Judicial District’s Critical Incident Response Team is an independent, multi-agency group responsible for conducting “thorough and impartial investigations into critical incidents involving law enforcement” in Moffat, Routt and Grand counties, according to the April 26 release.

Cochran acknowledged that while there is still an ongoing criminal investigations into the shooting, the investigation against the officer has yielded “enough information to be confident to put him back to work.”

When asked whether or not the city was assuming liability by placing an officer back on duty prior to multiple investigations being completed, City Attorney Heather Cannon declined to comment but did state: “We’re just not putting an officer back on duty without doing our due diligence.”

Karzen, the DA for the 14th Judicial District, would not comment on the city’s reinstatement of Caudell prior to his agency completing its investigation.

” I can’t speak to that because it really is outside my house completely,” said Karzen. When asked if the city would be assuming greater liability, Karzan stated: “My assumption is a municipality that is going to make that decision will ask themselves that piece.”

Regarding the release of the final report from the 14th Judicial District’s Critical Incident Response Team, Karzen said, “I’m hopeful that once the investigative materials are submitted in the complete form for review, that my process will be no more than two to four weeks to get a decision made in a full report whatever the outcome.”

Both Karzen and Cochran indicated that body cam footage of the shooting incident will be released, along with other materials, upon completion of the investigations.