KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting has ruled that an officer was justified in his use of force regarding a shooting incident that took place last May.
On Friday, May 21, just before 2:00 a.m., a police Sergeant with the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety (KDPS) was patrolling the area of Florence Street and Woodbury Avenue in Kalamazoo.
According to Getting’s report, the Sergeant was patrolling due to a shooting in the area that had occurred a few hours earlier at 11:00 p.m.
While patrolling, the Sergeant saw what appeared to be a heated argument in the front yard of a residence. When he approached the scene, he was informed that one of the people had a gun, which he also saw.
According to the report, the suspect did not obey commands to drop the gun, at which time the suspect turned towards him. The Sergeant fired his gun once, which struck the suspect in the left hip.
The suspect ultimately survived the shooting. He was identified as a 47-year-old Kalamazoo man.
It was later found that the man had a high level of alcohol in his blood, testing out at .16 percent.
The case was subsequently investigated by the Michigan State Police (MSP), as is standard procedure during an officer-involved shooting.
Evidence included both weapons involved in the incident, video from the officer’s body camera and dash cam, as well as video footage from a camera at the residence.
The investigation revealed that before the Sergeant arrived, the suspect had been drinking at the house with the homeowner and her two brothers, and the man who was shot is the father of three of her children, according to the report.
Police were informed by the homeowner that she was the owner of the gun, and she had retrieved it during an argument to make him leave the house. When the Sergeant arrived, the man had grabbed the gun out of her hands, just before he was told to put the gun down and was shot.
While recovering in the hospital, he stated that he didn’t know police were there, adding that he didn’t blame the officer for his actions.
In determining whether charges would be filed, Prosecutor Getting interviewed the officer involved, but said that attempts to conduct a follow-up interview with the man shot were unsuccessful.
In his final assessment, Getting said the officer was justified in the shooting.
“At that moment, in the dark, engaging persons who moments before were involved in a loud confrontation, faced with a man armed with a gun, who refused verbal commands, who turned towards him, any ‘reasonable officer’ would have a honest and reasonable belief that they were in immediate danger of serious injury or death,” Getting wrote.
No charges will be filed in this case.
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