Buttigieg goes home to South Bend after man killed by police

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The fatal shooting of a black man by a police officer in the Indiana city where Pete Buttigieg is mayor presents both political peril for a presidential candidate who has struggled to connect with minority voters and an opportunity to show leadership on issues of race and policing that are critical – and personal – for much of the Democratic primary electorate.

Buttigieg today canceled several days of campaign events after returning to South Bend, where he spent the day meeting with community members and faith leaders following the shooting of 54-year-old Eric Jack Logan.

Logan died after he was shot once in the abdomen from the front by a white officer who responded to a call about a suspicious person going through cars about 3:30 a.m. Sunday, St. Joseph County Prosecutor Ken Cotter said.

Sgt. Ryan O'Neill spotted the man, later identified as Logan, leaning inside a car, Cotter said. When O'Neill confronted him, Logan allegedly approached the officer with a 6- to 8-inch long knife raised over his head. That's when Cotter said the officer fired twice, with the other shot hitting a car door.

In a matter of months, Buttigieg has gone from a relatively obscure 37-year-old mayor to the top tier of a crowded Democratic presidential field. His handling of the shooting could test his ability to navigate the demands of the campaign trail while still performing his day job.

"I did consider it important to be here to have these conversations," Buttigieg said in South Bend on Sunday after cutting short a presidential campaign trip. "I know that whenever an incident like this happens, there is tremendous hurt that can come about. That the city will be hurting."

Asked by a reporter how the shooting might affect his presidential bid, Buttigieg declined to answer, saying, "Right now I'm here as mayor."

The white mayor has had a sometimes-tense relationship with the black community dating back to his first term in office, when he fired the city's first black police chief.

He has also faced criticism for his handling of police misconduct cases, including a case involving an officer who was twice disciplined for civil-rights violations but not fired, and for not having a police department that reflects South Bend's diversity. Roughly 40 percent of the city's residents are black or Hispanic; the department is almost 90 percent white.

Buttigieg said Sunday he was sometimes hesitant to speak publicly after shootings involving police earlier in his time as mayor and that he heard from the black community he needed to be more open and transparent.