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Standoff went bad too fast By JESSICA SMITH A standoff between officers and a reportedly suicidal man escalated too quickly to give a Jackson County Mental Health worker time to respond to the scene, according to one mental health official. Ronald Gardner, mental health program director, said a member of the department's Urgent Response Team was telephoned some time after police began negotiating with Cole Younger Smith, a 25-year-old man who police say threatened to shoot officers during a 90-minute standoff Dec. 28 outside Oregon State Police headquarters in Central Point. Gardner said police did not ask mental health officials to respond to the scene, but that the worker was considering going to OSP headquarters as he talked with officers. "Just when the worker was thinking maybe he could be of some value ... the incident happened," Gardner said. According to authorities, police shot at Smith after he rammed two patrol cars, got out of his pickup truck and charged at officers, who saw an object in his hands and feared he had shot an officer who tripped and fell. Earlier that night, Smith told officers he had a gun. Authorities later learned Smith was unarmed. Family members have raised questions about the shooting, saying mental health officials should have been on hand to evaluate Smith, who suffered from post traumatic stress disorder. Meanwhile, about 50 people gathered Tuesday night outside OSP headquarters to remember Smith and show their support for his family. Many said they were frustrated by the police's actions. "They just assumed he was dangerous," said Ed Lucero, a Central Point resident who questions why officers began firing at Smith. "If he didn't show a weapon, there is no justification for shooting a man 24 times." An autopsy report shows that Smith died of multiple gunshot wounds. He was struck by 21 to 23 bullets. Officials from OSP and the Medford Police Department said they were unable to discuss the shooting in detail because the case has yet to be reviewed by the Jackson County Grand Jury. The grand jury, set to convene Friday, will determine whether officers were justified in their shooting of Smith. At least one police official, Jackson County Sheriff Bob Kennedy, has concerns about the incident. "There were a lot of things that went right. But there were some things that happened that we could improve on, too," Kennedy said. He declined to be more specific. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA