Man who died in Garfield standoff suspected of being shot by law enforcement, medical examiner says
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said Thursday that it suspects the man who died Wednesday after a six-hour standoff with police in Pittsburgh’s Garfield neighborhood was shot by law enforcement.
William Hardison, 63, died at 5:07 p.m. in the 4800 block of Broad Street, the office said.
Several law enforcement agencies responded to the scene after the first shots were fired late Wednesday morning. The medical examiner’s report did not say which law enforcement agency shot Hardison.
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• Garfield gunman dead after 6-hour standoff
The standoff started Wednesday after seven Allegheny County sheriff’s deputies arrived on Broad Street to evict Hardison, who was living in the property illegally, according to Allegheny County Court records. Police said that Hardison opened fire on the sheriffs, who took cover.
A six-hour standoff ensued with thousands of bullets exchanged between Hardison and law enforcement, according to officials.
The property originally belonged to Hardison’s brother, who died in 2021. The property was left to Hardison’s father, who sold it to a real-estate investment company in February. It’s unclear how long Hardison was living on the property.
Ryan Deto is a TribLive reporter covering politics, Pittsburgh and Allegheny County news. A native of California’s Bay Area, he joined the Trib in 2022 after spending more than six years covering Pittsburgh at the Pittsburgh City Paper, including serving as managing editor. He can be reached at rdeto@triblive.com.
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