Police shoot, kill ax-wielding Bainbridge Island man

An "extremely agitated" 43-year-old man was fatally shot by Bainbridge Island police Tuesday night after he charged them with a double-bladed ax, police said.

According to police, Doug M. Ostling phoned Bainbridge Island police dispatchers around 8:30 p.m. Police say he rambled, cursed and yelled incoherently and then hung up.

Two officers were sent to his family's home in the 7700 block of Springridge Road Northeast, south of Fletcher Bay, where Ostling lived in an apartment above the garage, police said.

Scott Wilson, a spokesman for the Kitsap County Sheriff's Office, which is investigating the shooting, said Ostling was "extremely agitated" when he met the officers in the driveway.

Bainbridge Island Police Chief Jon Fehlman said the officers were trying to calm Ostling down and figure out what was wrong when he charged at them.

One of the officers used a Taser on Ostling, Wilson said, but the stun gun apparently had no effect.

Ostling retreated to the garage and then emerged with a double-bladed ax, police said. According to Fehlman, Ostling raised the weapon over his head and charged at the officers.

One of the officers, Jeff Benkert, fired multiple shots at Ostling, police said.

After he was shot, Ostling returned to his apartment and barricaded himself inside; police did not immediately know whether he had been wounded, Wilson said. A SWAT team was called, and officers determined around 10 p.m. that Ostling was dead, he said.

"He was mortally wounded, went into his apartment and died," Wilson said.

Wilson said Benkert, 30, has been with Bainbridge Island police for three years after serving five years with the Los Angeles Police Department. The officer who used the Taser on Ostling was identified as David Portrey, a 38-year-old reserve officer who has been with the department since 1994, according to Wilson.

Both officers have been placed on paid administrative leave pending the results of the investigation.

Ostling had no criminal history, court records indicate, but in 2002 his parents sought, and received, guardianship over him after he was declared incompetent.

One neighbor said Ostling's parents warned her their adult son had mental-health issues. "They said it's probably not a good idea to get involved with him, especially when I'm home alone," she told the Kitsap Sun. "I was told [by his parents] to avoid eye contact with him."

But another neighbor, Scott Coplan, said he never had any troubles with the man. He said the Ostling family is "very, very sweet and very dear."

"No matter how you slice it, it's the saddest story in the world to lose your child, a tragedy beyond measure."

Times researcher David Turim contributed. Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com