This story deals with intimate partner violence and its effects. If you or a loved one is experiencing intimate partner violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or text “start” to 88788.
Dustin Zink’s wife was going to bathe her child when her husband walked outside their home and began firing a gun.
Zink had been an officer with the Florence Police Department for over nine years. On July 3, he began shooting out the windows and tires of his wife’s Hyundai SUV.
“I tried to stop him,” she told a 911 dispatcher, “and he wouldn’t stop at all.”
New police records obtained by The Enquirer provide insight into the moments leading up to a SWAT standoff that resulted in the end of an off-duty officer’s life.
Police records show moments before shooting
Zink’s wife fled with her children to a neighbor’s house shortly after 9 p.m., according to a 911 call. They were OK, she said.
She didn’t know why her husband fired a gun. She told the dispatcher he’d been drinking.
A review of police records do not indicate a history of domestic violence calls at Zink’s address.
Zink began firing a second round of shots into the car as police sirens could be heard entering the neighborhood, according to the call. Police issued a quarter-mile-wide shelter-in-place notice.
Officials spoke with Zink on the phone during negotiations, records show. It isn’t clear how the conversation played out.
Records show Zink pointed pointed a gun at his head at least five times throughout the night. He was observed multiple times with beer.
Zink was a handler for in Florence Police Department’s K9 unit. His dog, Atos, was home during the shooting.
Florence police officer fatally shot
Boone County deputies shot Zink in the left arm and left abdomen, according to police records. He was pronounced dead at St. Elizabeth Hospital, officials said.
No deputies were injured.
Florence police said Zink “dedicated his career to protecting our community with honor, integrity, and compassion” in a July 4 statement.
“While we cannot comment on the circumstances of this investigation, we believe one moment does not define a person.”
Kentucky State Police are investigating in the shooting.
Anyone struggling with suicidal thoughts can call or text the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, or 800-273-8255 any time day or night, or chat online at https://988lifeline.org/chat/.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Records give insight into fatal shooting of Florence officer
Reporting by Matthew Cupelli, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Matthew Cupelli, Cincinnati Enquirer | USA TODAY Network
