SAN DIEGO, July 22 (UPI) — A male dancer who jumped off a ship in San Diego Bay was shot dead by a police officer who tried to rescue him.

An autopsy found that Steven Paul Hirschfield was killed by a shot to the chest, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

Hirschfield was performing at a party Saturday night on board the Inspiration. The ship, operated by Hornblower Cruises, had been chartered by a group celebrating Gay Pride Week.

Witnesses said that Hirschfield, wearing white briefs and sneakers, went over the rail as people approached him. The ship put a boat in the water to rescue him but he refused to board it.

Two Harbor Police officers pulled Hirschfield from the water a short time later. The officers, Clyde Williams and Wayne Schmidt, said that Hirschfield knocked Schmidt over and then grabbed his taser and beat him with it.

When Hirschfield tried to grab Schmidt’s gun, Williams shot him. Both officers have been placed on paid leave while the death is investigated.

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