COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) -- The mother of a gunman says a mental breakdown caused her son to display a gun on the streets of central Columbia, leading to law enforcement fatally shooting him.
Wanda Coats tells the Columbia Daily Tribune on Monday that 41-year-old Clarence Coats Jr. had recently returned to Columbia and was dealing with some issues that weren't expressed in detail.
Police say they responded on Saturday to reports of a man threatening people and firing gunshots. A Columbia police officer allegedly fired at Clarence after shots were fired by him at officers. Clarence was pronounced dead at University Hospital.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol's Division of Drug and Crime Control is investigating the officer-involved shooting.
Wanda says she hopes her family can be left alone to deal with the death.