The La Crosse Police Department is providing additional information in light of the La Crosse District Attorney’s Office completing their review of the officer involved shooting that occurred on August 3rd at 317 9th St. South with Allen C. Kruk (DOB 12-04-1984).
The initial call on August 3rd was for a domestic disturbance complaint where Mr. Kruk was the ex-husband of the complainant and was at the back door of the residence. Additionally dispatch advised the responding officers that Mr. Kruk had a felony warrant for his arrest. La Crosse Police Officer Dustin Darling arrived and made contact with Mr. Kruk at the rear of the residence at which time Mr. Kruk pulled out a hand gun. Officer Darling drew his sidearm and the two exchanged gun fire. The officer was struck by one round in the chest area which was stopped by the officer’s ballistic vest. The suspect was struck multiple times by the officer’s return fire. The officer was transported by TriState Ambulance to a local hospital where he was treated and released for injuries associated with being struck by the suspects gun fire. The suspect was also transported by TriState Ambulance to a local hospital where he is still being treated for injuries associated with the incident.
The attached video is from Officer Darling’s body worn camera. This video was turned over to the Division of Criminal Investigations (DCI) of the Wisconsin Department of Justice as part of their independent investigation into the officer involved shooting and part of the information reviewed by the District Attorney’s Office.
As you can see from the video, Officer Darling makes contact with Mr. Kruk and asks him to come out. Mr. Kruk begins to back into the house while Officer Darling steps up and attempts to take a hold of him. After this, in real time, it is hard to tell exactly what happens other than the exchange of gun fire.
When the video is slowed to 1/16th speed, you will see Officer Darling take hold of Mr. Kruk’s arm as he attempts to retreat back to the house. As Mr. Kruk is pulling away, he reaches to his right hip and pulls a pistol out. Officer Darling immediately releases his hold on Kruk, draws his own weapon while stepping backwards to create space, and there is gun fire. While creating space, Officer Darling loses sight of Kruk in the rear entryway so he takes a step forward to locate him again. Here you will see Kruk lying on the ground with his pistol pointed up at Officer Darling. This is when Kruk shoots Officer Darling in the chest. Officer Darling responds with several more shots at Kruk and retreats to a safe location to radio for help.
The La Crosse Police Department is providing these two videos as a matter of transparency and accountability to the community we serve. We have worked cooperatively with the Division of Criminal Investigations (DCI) of the Wisconsin Department of Justice to ensure their independent investigation into this incident is as thorough as possible with a high level of integrity.
Lastly, the La Crosse Police Department is happy to report that Officer Darling is doing well and healing up from the injury caused by the gun shot to his ballistic vest. He is still on administrative leave as part of the “Officer Involved Critical Incident” protocol.
La Crosse PD Newsroom 