Fort Collins
Fort Collins CSU shooting: what happened and who investigates
Campus police said the man had a handgun and advanced toward the responding officer; they did not classify the incident as an active-shooter event. Students and employees can find options for alerts and further updates.
The Eighth Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team was activated for an officer-involved shooting near Newton Plaza on Colorado State University's Main Campus on Oct. 12, 2026.
Here's what the responding officer encountered, whether CSU Police classified the incident as an active-shooter event, how CSU alerted campus and how students and employees can get safety updates.
What did the responding officer encounter before the shooting?
CSU Police said the officer found a man armed with a handgun and that the man advanced toward the officer. Gunfire occurred, and the man was shot.
Was anyone injured?
The officer immediately gave first aid, and the man was taken to an area hospital for care. No other injuries have been reported.
Did CSU Police classify the incident as an active-shooter incident?
CSU Police determined the incident was not an active-shooter incident.
How did CSU alert the campus during the incident?
At 6 p.m. Oct. 12, CSU instructed people to avoid the area between the Chemistry and Microbiology buildings because of police activity and to follow law enforcement directions. At 6:50 p.m., CSU posted an all-clear for the area near those buildings, while noting police activity would continue and asking people to avoid the immediate area and follow law enforcement directions.
CSU's alert and all-clear messages each went to more than 48,000 email addresses and text numbers belonging to campus community members. CSU's incident update said some people did not receive the text alerts. The university was working to understand why and fix the issue going forward, the update said.
How can CSU students and employees get safety updates?
CSU students and employees can receive safety updates in these ways:
- You can opt in for text alerts and advisories through instructions on CSU's safety site. All colostate.edu email addresses also receive alerts.
- Text CSUALERT to 888777 for safety updates such as closed roads, building outages and out-of-service elevators.
- Text CSURAMS to 888777 for safety updates at university events such as football games and concerts.
CSU's incident update said campus digital screens are used for situations involving an ongoing threat.
Which agency is leading the investigation, and where will further updates come from?
Fort Collins Police Services is the lead investigating agency, CSU says. The Eighth Judicial District Critical Incident Response Team was activated for the officer-involved shooting and responded to take over the investigation. CSU says Fort Collins Police Services will release any further information about the incident.