It’s still been less than a week since Patriot Prayer supporter Aaron “Jay” Danielson was shot and killed in Portland by Michael Forest Reinoehl, better known as Mr. 100% Antifa. I’m no longer using the word “allegedly” when describing the killing since Reinoehl, perhaps unwisely, gave an interview to Vice yesterday admitting he killed Danielson while maintaining it was a case of self-defense. I’m sure a jury would have had their work cut out for them in sorting out the details. But that’s no longer going to be an issue since a confrontation with federal agents overnight left the Antifa antagonist in the same condition as his own victim from last Saturday. He’s currently at room temperature in a horizontal position after pulling a gun on the agents who had come to place him under arrest. (NY Post)

The suspected gunman who fatally shot a right-wing protester in Portland last weekend was reportedly shot and killed by law enforcement authorities Thursday night as they attempted to arrest him.

Michael Forest Reinoehl, 48, died in Lacey, Washington, where federal agents were attempting to take him into custody for the shooting — the same night his interview on the shooting aired on Vice News, The New York Times reported.

Reinoehl in the interview insisted he acted in self-defense and “had no choice” when he shot Aaron “Jay” Danielson, 39, after an evening of clashing protests in Portland on Aug. 29.

Coming in from Twitter, there is a video of the officers attempting to revive Reinoehl after he was shot. (Warning: Graphic images)

GRAPHIC: Lacey, Wash. resident records the immediate aftermath of the shooting of Portland antifa militant Michael Reinoehl. Video: Jashon Spencer pic.twitter.com/ZwEvERzEHa

— Andy Ngô (@MrAndyNgo) September 4, 2020

Details of how the arrest turned into gunplay are still sketchy, but early reports indicate that Reinoehl pulled a handgun when the agents confronted him, leading to the predictable result when you do something like that. Other claims coming from social media say that he had a semiautomatic rifle. I don’t see any sign of the killer’s weapon in the video above, so it’s tough to say. One report indicates that the suspect “produced a firearm, threatening the lives of law enforcement officers.” Is it possible that he was only drawing or manipulating his weapon to surrender it? I suppose we would have to say… maybe? But if the threats in question were verbal or if he was pointing the barrel in the general direction of the officers, that seems unlikely.

Besides, in a tense situation like that, the arresting officers will generally offer the opportunity for the suspect to get into a manageable position and disarm him themselves. If you just reach for your holster and pull or level a rifle at them, it’s probably going to go badly for you. Far more likely is the idea that Reinoehl was engaging in “suicide by cop” if he was pretty sure he was going to go down for a murder rap.

While some may be tempted to describe this as a case of just desserts and a killer getting what he had coming to him, this is really a disappointing result for a couple of different reasons. First and foremost, we won’t get the opportunity for Reinoehl to go before a jury and await his fate. The death penalty most likely wouldn’t have been on the table, particularly if his attorney could have made an even slightly plausible argument that there was an element of self-defense involved.

Another concern is the fact that without a definitive decision by a jury finding him guilty of the murder, his death at the hands of law enforcement risks having all of the Antifa maniacs out on the streets turning him into some sort of martyr for their cause. Some coverage on CNN this morning suggested that there were already threads showing up on Antifa social media describing Reinoehl’s death as an “execution by the police.” Rather than sending a warning to the violent mobs, this may simply give them a “hero” to invoke as they promote further violence.

Sadly, that’s all water under the bridge at this point. Everyone will go with their own preferred interpretation of this event and another violent lunatic will step up to fill Reinoehl’s shoes.