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ELPD identifies man killed in officer-involved shooting

April 20, 2026
East Lansing Police respond to an armed robbery call inside of Puff Puff Tabacco on M.A.C. Ave. near Grand River in East Lansing, MI on Feb. 6, 2026.
East Lansing Police respond to an armed robbery call inside of Puff Puff Tabacco on M.A.C. Ave. near Grand River in East Lansing, MI on Feb. 6, 2026.

The East Lansing Police Department identified the man killed in a officer-involved shooting last Wednesday at Lake Lansing and Abbott Roads as 21-year-old Isaiah Christopher Kirby, from Owings, Maryland. 

The shooting occurred when police responded to a theft at a business at 6:06 p.m. on Wednesday, April 15, which evolved into a stabbing by a suspect, which the police identified as Kirby in a press release Monday evening.

“The ELPD has begun the process of reviewing and producing a video timeline of the events, which will be shared in the upcoming weeks,” the press release stated. “The names of the officers involved in the shooting will also be shared at that time.”

Michigan State Police is conducting an investigation into the “entirety of events involved in this incident,” as is procedure, the release stated.

At a press conference hours after the shooting Wednesday, before Kirby was identified, ELPD Chief Jennifer Brown said the stabbing suspect was seen running towards responding officers and did not follow orders to drop the knife in his hand. Police officers then shot the suspect, who was pronounced dead at the scene, Brown said.

The incident occurred roughly two miles north of MSU's campus near the Arbor Glen Apartments complex and The Cottages.

The victim of the stabbing, Douglas Mielock, an attorney at law firm Foster Swift, is beginning recovery at home following their release from the hospital last weekend, the press release wrote.

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