Inquest set in shooting by cop

Tuesday, April 20, 1999 | 11:11 a.m.

A coroner's inquest into the fatal shooting of an unarmed man by a Metro Police officer has been scheduled for 9 a.m. on May 7 in District Court.

At that time, a jury of seven citizens and an alternate will be assembled in Department 5 to hear the contents of a Clark County Coroner's report and other evidence regarding the April 12 slaying of 32-year-old John Perrin of Las Vegas.

Metro Police officer Bruce Gentner, a 27-year-old, four-year veteran of the department, is on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the hearing.

Clark County Coroner Ron Flud confirmed today that he released a copy of the coroner's report to the attorney for Perrin's family.

Although the contents of that report were subsequently made public, Flud declined to comment on the findings that six bullets, not five as was initially reported by police, were found in the victim, including three in his back.

Flud said, however, that hypothetically an initial gunshot could spin a person in such a way that additional rounds fired could strike him in the back and other body parts.

Flud also would not comment that 14 rounds were fired, as the report says. Flud said 9 mm pistols that are either issued to or brought on the job by police officers hold 12 to 14 bullets in the clip and one round in the chamber, depending on the model.

That would indicate that Gentner emptied or nearly emptied his weapon while firing at the man.

Attempts to reach a Metro official for comment were unsuccessful, as were attempts this morning to reach the attorney for Perrin's family.

Investigators said the incident occurred after Perrin was stopped about 11:30 p.m. while running east across Rainbow Boulevard near a drainage canal south of Tropicana Avenue. Police said the man, who had a basketball in his hand, was acting suspiciously.

Perrin, according to police, reached for an object in his waistband and Gentner shot him. No weapon other than the officer's gun was found at the scene, police said.

A small, dark, glass jar with a metallic lid containing a substance believed to be used to manufacture methamphetamine, however, was found near the man's body, as was a plastic-wrapped bundle that could have contained a drug, police said.