Original Article Driver denies trying to hit police officer Passenger killed after beer run Senta Scarborough The Arizona Republic Nov. 10, 2004 12:00 AM The driver of a car involved in a fatal police shooting Monday in Mesa said he tried to put the vehicle in park when police yelled at him to stop, but struggled with the gear shift, sending the car forward, according to court records released Tuesday. Oscar Bobby Grey, 18, of Scottsdale, in court records, told police that the car likely moved several feet but denied to them, and later to his brother in a phone call from jail, "intending to strike the officer with the vehicle." Mesa police Officer Jerald Ray fired two rounds into the green Dodge Stratus, wounding Grey and killing front-seat passenger Kevin Olivas, 21. Patrick James, 37, and his 3-year-old son were in the back seat of the car and were not injured during the shooting in a cul-de-sac on Brown Road near Mesa Drive. Police said Ray fired at Grey fearing for the safety of Officer John Dankanich because of the vehicle's motion, the driver's movements, and the sound of a revving engine. James' ex-girlfriend, the mother of his son, said that the car belonged to her nephew and that it had transmission problems and the gear shift didn't work properly. "That car won't shift. It can't go faster than 40 miles per hour," said the woman, whose name is being withheld to protect her son's identity. "They couldn't even run away from a cop." According to new details released Tuesday, officers saw two men carrying cases of beer from a grocery store shortly before 1 p.m., get into a car, and drive off erratically, weaving in and out of traffic. The driver then made a "sudden turn" into a cul-de-sac in the 700 block of East Brown Road, followed by Ray and Officer Brandon Monnens in their patrol car. One of the officers began to get out of the car and saw the vehicle begin to back toward the patrol car, according to records. A second patrol car arrived to the left of the suspects' vehicle, and all three officers gave commands to stop. As Ray moved to the vehicle's passenger side, he saw the vehicle "lunge forward" toward Dankanich, who stepped toward the vehicle. "After seeing this, the officer on the passenger side of the vehicle fired at the suspect driver in an attempt to stop his forward progress," court records say. "The officer who was nearly struck by the suspect vehicle said he believes he would have been seriously injured if he did not jump out of the way of the oncoming suspect vehicle." Joseph Grey, 19, said his brother, Oscar, called him from jail Tuesday morning and admitted he was involved in the theft, but said he didn't try to run down an officer. Oscar Grey, a high school student, is accused of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and shoplifting. "He told us he does not know why they had to shoot at them. He was trying to surrender and he tried to put the car in park," Joseph Grey said. "I guess he freaked out because they had the guns out and he was playing with the gears." Mesa resident Brian Knox, 17, told 12 News on Tuesday that he heard tires screeching and ran outside. "I seen one (officer) held his gun drawn on the car yelling 'freeze, freeze.' Then he fired two shots. I freaked out and took off," said Knox, who returned to tell police what he saw: "I told them I didn't think the car was moving at all." Knox said he didn't see a threat to police. "I feel so bad for the passengers because I didn't see a reason why they were shot. (From) here, it didn't look like it was their fault to get shot. That's my opinion." Police said Tuesday they are still interviewing witnesses. The three officers remain on routine paid leave.