WEST VALLEY CITY — Family members and friends of a man killed Friday night during an altercation with West Valley police officers said that they are “heartbroken” by his loss.
“We do not understand the circumstances that took his life, and we are anxiously awaiting the results of the investigation that is being handled by the Salt Lake City Police Department,” the mother of Chad Michael Breinholt, 31, said in a statement Sunday.
He’d been working to turn his life around, his mother said.
“Although he struggled for many years to overcome his challenges, Chad was trying daily to overcome them through faith and family. Chad was a good person with a good heart and was very much loved by his family and friends,” the family said.
Friends told the Deseret News he had gone back to school and was doing well but that he may have relapsed recently.
On Friday, Breinholt, 31, was reportedly intoxicated and had been “causing problems” at a business near 2900 S. Redwood Road at about 7 p.m., West Valley police have said. Breinholt had been dating one of the employees at the place of business.
When officers arrived, they determined Breinholt had been drinking and had been driving a vehicle while intoxicated. They arrested Breinholt and took him to the police station located in the basement of West Valley City Hall, 3600 Constitution Blvd.
While Breinholt was being processed for his arrest, an officer fired his weapon, hitting Breinholt and killing him, police said.
The officer was wearing a body camera and any and all pertinent information will be turned over to the Salt Lake City police, who are investigating the incident, West Valley police said.