Berlin Rules Lombard Cop Was Justified In Fatal Shooting

LOMBARD, IL — DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin has determined a Lombard police officer was justified when he shot an armed robbery suspect who later died.

In a statement, Berlin said, "All of the Lombard Police Officers involved in this incident should be commended for their professionalism during this extremely tense incident."

Detective Ryan Postal shot Pierre Thompson on the right side of his back and chest and in his upper left arm on Dec. 8, 2022, while responding to the armed robbery at a smoke shop at 54 Roosevelt Rd.

According to prosecutors, Postal and his partner pulled up to a car that was believed to have been involved in the robbery. Thompson ran past the car Postal and another police officer were in, which prompted Postal to urge him to show his hands, prosecutors said.

At that time, police say Thompson raised a pistol and fired at Postal and his partner, striking Postal in the right leg. Postal then opened the car door, fired back at Postal and fell to the ground.

Postal said he opened fire after he saw Thompson reaching for his gun again. Thompson was hit twice by gunfire. Officers reportedly performed "life-saving measures" on Thompson, Berlin said, but Thompson died of multiple gunshot wounds.

Related: Police Officer, Suspect Shot During Armed Robbery: Lombard Authorities

Postal was taken to a local hospital, where he was treated for a shattered femur.

Investigators reported finding stolen cash, along with a wallet and backpack that belonged to an employee of the smoke shop near Thompson's body. They also reported finding three Hornady 9mm fired cartridge casings from Postal's gun and six CCI 9mm casings from Thompson's gun. According to investigator's Thompson's gun had been equipped with an extended magazine and altered so it could be fully automatic, making it a machine gun by Illinois law.

The fatal shooting was investigated by DuPage Metropolitan Emergency Response and Investigation Team (MERIT). MERIT determined that there was "no question that Thompson’s shooting a fully automatic handgun six times at Detective Postal created an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to both Detective Postal and his partner," Berlin said.

Berlin also said MERIT found that "Detective Postal was justified in using deadly force because he reasonably believed, based on the totality of the circumstances, that such force was necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm to himself and his partner."