LITTLE ROCK -- Little Rock Police Chief Keith Humphrey was on administrative leave Saturday as Arkansas State Police investigated an officer-involved shooting on New Year's Eve in which Humphrey fired his service weapon at a suspect, who was not injured and was later arrested, according to a news release Saturday afternoon.
Assistant Chief Crystal Young-Haskins will be acting chief of police during the investigation, Little Rock Mayor Frank Scott said in a Saturday afternoon statement on Twitter.
Humphrey, who was on patrol Friday night, encountered a fight in the parking lot of the Superstop at 5103 Asher Ave., according to the Little Rock Police Department news release.
As Humphrey was leaving his vehicle to intervene, Taz Hayes, 29, fired into the group, injuring Kelecia Mayo, 22, according to an Arkansas State Police news release.
The arrest report, obtained from the Pulaski County jail, said Hayes "was involved in a road rage incident that ended at the Superstop."
"A verbal altercation insued that turned physical," the report states. "Subject exited her vehicle holding a weapon and began firing at another female, approximately six times, striking the victim."
Humphrey drew his weapon and fired at Hayes, who was not hurt and fled the scene but was later arrested by Arkansas State Police.
"This is an unprecedented situation because it involves our chief of police," Scott said in his statement.
The city asked the state police to investigate the initial fight and Humphrey's response in an effort to remain "accountable, clear and transparent," Scott said.
It is common practice to place officers involved in shootings on leave, pending the results of an investigation, and state police officers frequently assist local police departments in investigations.
State police investigators will submit their findings to Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney Larry Jegley, who will determine if Humphrey's use of force was justified under Arkansas law.
Humphrey and other members of the command staff have patrolled on New Year's Eve in past years, and Humphrey said at a Thursday news conference that he would be in uniform Friday night.
State police investigators recovered a bullet from a vehicle in the parking lot, which will be examined at the state Crime Laboratory to see if it was fired from Humphrey's weapon, the state police said.
The Crime Lab had no results as of Saturday, state police spokesman Bill Sadler told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Hayes was being held at the Pulaski County jail, and she faces a first-degree battery charge. She is to appear in court Monday, Police Department spokesman Mark Edwards said.
Mayo was taken to a Little Rock hospital and was in critical condition Saturday morning but had improved to stable condition by Saturday evening, Edwards said.
Little Rock police and Scott said all questions about the investigation should be referred to the state police, while the state police said questions about the identity of the officer involved in the shooting and his administrative status should be referred to the Little Rock Police Department.
Multiple members of the city board of directors could not be reached for comment Saturday.
Dean Kumpuris, one of three directors at large, declined to comment about the investigation. He said the state police should handle it "like they would any officer-involved shooting."
Sadler said the agency's investigative procedure is the same for everyone.
"The rank of the officer involved, whether he be a chief of police, a captain, lieutenant, sergeant, it really doesn't matter because the [state] statute refers to the use of deadly force by an officer," he said. "It doesn't delineate between the rank and file of the department, so it [the case] won't be treated any differently."
Humphrey's relationship with his fellow Police Department officers has been strained in recent years. Several of his colleagues filed a series of legal complaints against him, alleging retaliation related to the aftermath of a 2019 police shooting.
Humphrey countersued them in 2020, claiming that leaders of the largest local police union -- the Little Rock Fraternal Order of Police, Lodge No. 17 -- along with many others had conspired to oust him from his job.
U.S. District Judge James M. Moody Jr. in September 2021 granted motions to dismiss the lawsuit. As of November, a decision remains pending in federal court as to whether Humphrey and his attorney Michael Laux will face sanctions and be ordered to pay approximately $48,000 in the police union's legal fees.