St. Louis Police: Officers shot man who pointed gun at them

ST. LOUIS -- A man was shot and critically wounded by St. Louis police officers who say the man pointed a gun at them, police reported.

The shooting happened around 5:45 p.m. Monday on the far north end of the city, just east of Jennings, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

Police Chief John Hayden told reporters in a news conference that two officers were in a patrol car in the area when they spotted a man with a gun and confronted him. The man refused to drop the gun, Hayden said, and both officers fired at him.

The man was taken to a hospital in critical condition. His name has not been released. Police recovered the gun the man was reported to have been pointing at officers, Hayden said.

Police also have not named the officers involved, but said both are 27 years old. One has been with the department for four years, and the other for less than two years, Hayden said.