Hoax 911 call ends in gunfire, paralysis for Tucson-area man, attorneys say

A 24-year-old Tucson-area man was left paralyzed from the chest down after Pima County sheriff’s deputies shot him during a response to a fake 911 call, according to his attorneys.

Axeel Melendez had contacted 911 on April 8 after people who hacked him threatened to report a fake emergency at his home. Two days later, someone posing as Melendez called 911 and falsely reported that a shooting was happening there.

Deputies arrived around 5:40 a.m. believing a girl had been shot. Body camera footage shows a deputy breaking through a window into Melendez’s room. Melendez’s attorneys say he was hiding with a legally registered handgun and was not pointing it at deputies when they fired multiple shots. The bullets caused a T4 spinal cord injury, leaving him unable to walk.

Melendez’s attorneys filed a notice of claim seeking $320 million from Pima County and the sheriff’s department. Arizona law requires the county and department to respond within 60 days before a lawsuit can be filed. A retired FBI agent said law enforcement should take additional steps to identify possible swatting calls, while the sheriff’s department said it would not comment on pending litigation.