According to documents from the Minnesota court system, two women previously requested protective orders against the Burnsville police shooter, Shannon Cortez Gooden.
Early Sunday morning, Gooden, 38, opened fire on multiple first responders after they were called to respond to a domestic abuse incident at a Burnsville home. The subsequent gunfight left two Burnsville police officers and a fire medic dead. Gooden died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Several officers returned fire during the incident.
Gooden, whom Alpha News was the first to identify as the shooter, previously had been convicted of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon in 2008. Subsequently, Gooden was sentenced to multiple years of probation.
After this conviction, Gooden lost his right to possess firearms. Years after the conviction and completing his probation sentence, Gooden applied to have his firearm rights restored in 2020. However, his petition for the restoration of his firearm rights was opposed by the Dakota County Attorney’s Office.
In opposing Gooden’s petition, the Dakota County Attorney’s Office referenced domestic assault allegations involving Gooden.
According to the Dakota County Attorney’s Office, a woman previously filed for a protective order against Gooden in 2017. The woman who requested the protective order shared one or more children with Gooden. In her request for a protective order, the woman alleged Gooden “head butted” her in the face which resulted in a concussion and black eye, the court documents say. Additionally, the woman claimed Gooden “threw her down the stairs.”
However, the court did not authorize the protective order because the woman failed to appear in court.
Another request for a protective order against Gooden came from a second woman with whom Gooden shared children.
According to the Dakota County Attorney’s Office, the woman’s petition said Gooden instructed his girlfriend to beat her up “while they were arranging for child exchange.”
Furthermore, the woman claimed Gooden “would pull her hair, throw her against the wall,” and “let his family members assault” her. The woman also spoke of an incident where Gooden allegedly “grabbed a knife and cut her clothes and side swiped her foot” which caused her to fall down the stairs.
The second protective order was not granted “because the allegations were not proved.”
“[Gooden] does not dispute he has been convicted of a crime of violence, subjecting him to a lifetime ban from possessing firearms,” the Dakota County Attorney’s Office said in opposition to Gooden’s petition.
“Given the seriousness of [Gooden’s] crime of violence conviction involving a dangerous weapon (7-inch knife), a continued disregard to obey the law, and lack of good cause, the Dakota County Attorney’s Office opposes an order from the Court restoring Petitioner’s ability to possess firearms.”
Gooden’s petition to have his firearm rights reinstated was eventually rejected by a judge in 2020, suggesting that Gooden was illegally in possession of firearms during Sunday’s shooting.
An official with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) said that Gooden had multiple firearms in the house when Gooden started shooting at first responders. A significant amount of ammunition was also found at the scene. Seven children were present in the home throughout the standoff.
Firing at first responders from “multiple positions,” Gooden shot and killed officers Paul Elmstrand, 27, and Matthew Ruge, 27, as well as firefighter/paramedic Adam Finseth, 40. Police Sgt. Adam Medlicott was also injured during the incident and was released from the hospital Monday.
According to dispatch audio reported on by Crime Watch Minneapolis, Gooden was also “wanted or was to be arrested for 2nd degree criminal sexual conduct” at the time of the shooting.
The Hennepin County County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed Gooden was the shooter in a statement released via the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Monday evening.
‘We need you to pray’
“We are all hurting. Our officers, our fire department, our families, all of our staff, our community. We’re heartbroken,” Burnsville Police Chief Tanya Schwartz said. “We are going to need time to be together. Our families need time to grieve. They need time to be together. We need you to pray for them. That’s what we need right now.”
Hundreds gathered for a vigil outside of Burnsville City Hall Sunday night in an overwhelming show of support for the fallen first responders and their families. Among those in attendance was Minnesota State Trooper Ryan Londregan, who was just recently charged with second-degree unintentional murder by left-wing Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty.
A law enforcement procession accompanied Finseth’s body Monday afternoon from Minnetonka to a funeral home in Jordan, where a crowd of supporters greeted the fallen hero.
The City of Burnsville said it will post links to official donation sites and information on how to help on its community updates page, warning residents to “be aware of scams.”
Luke Sprinkel
Luke Sprinkel previously worked as a Legislative Assistant at the Minnesota House of Representatives. He grew up as a Missionary Kid (MK) living in England, Thailand, Tanzania, and the Middle East. Luke graduated from Regent University in 2018.
