Lance Tamayo
Lance Tamayo was waiving what looked like a gun at De Anza Cove on Wednesday before being shot by police. Photo courtesy of News 8

A man who was shot after a confrontation with San Diego police officers at Mission Bay Park waived his right to a preliminary hearing Friday and will proceed to trial.

Lance Tamayo, 46, is charged with exhibiting a firearm in the presence of peace officers. He faces three years and eight months in prison if convicted.

Tamayo called police from the 2800 block of North Mission Bay Drive shortly after 11 a.m. Aug. 6 and told dispatchers that he was going to shoot himself, according to San Diego police Sgt. Manuel Del Toro.

Officers arrived to find Tamayo sitting in his car in a parking area near De Anza Cove. They called him on his cell phone and spoke with him for about 15 minutes before he agreed to surrender, Del Toro said.

Tamayo then allegedly got out of his car but returned and grabbed a loaded 9 mm pistol. He then “pointed his gun recklessly at various people in the park,” at a police helicopter overhead, and at the nearby officers, prompting Officer Michael Weaver to shoot the suspect in the stomach, wounding him, the sergeant said.

Tamayo will be back in court March 2 for a readiness conference. Trial was set for April 1.

City News Service