Burnsville Officer Justified In Shooting Death: County Attorney

BURNSVILLE, MN — Dakota County Attorney James Backstrom announced that he has concluded, "after a thorough review of the facts" surrounding the death of Jaime Joseph Lewis on Sept. 26, 2016, that Burnsville Police Sergeant Steven Stoler was legally justified when he used deadly force that caused Jamie Lewis’ death.

Facts, via the Dakota County Sheriff's Office:

At about 8:20 p.m., multiple Burnsville police officers responded to a 911 "crisis call" from an apartment located at 1605 Cliff Road East in Burnsville. The former girlfriend of Jaime Lewis told officers that she had recently ended her relationship with him and that he was extremely upset over the breakup.

She further told officers that Lewis had been making numerous suicidal threats and that he left the apartment that night with a handgun. She further advised officers that Lewis had a history of severe depression, but was not on any current medication.

She also told officers that Lewis was a convicted felon and that he had previously told her he would go to prison for 10 years if caught with a weapon and that he would rather die than go back to prison. All of this information was relayed by the DakotaCounty Communication Center to officers responding to the scene.

Officers began to search the area for Lewis shortly after receiving the above report. At 9:28 p.m., a Minnesota State Patrol helicopter that responded to the scene located a heat source, later identified asLewis, with its heat sensing detection device near the east side of a commercial building adjacent to the apartment complex. The helicopter directed Burnsville police officers to this location. Burnsville PoliceS ergeant Steven Stoler and
Officer Brett Levin were the first to arrive at the location. Both exited their squad vehicles with their department issued rifles with scopes.

Levin directed his squad spotlight atLewis who was observed through the officers’ rifle scopes to be lying on the ground holding a gun. Both Stoler and Levin repeatedly yelled: “Burnsville Police, drop the gun”; “Police, hands in the air, keep your hands in the air”; “Police, drop the gun, drop the gun”.

Lewis refused the officers’ commands to drop the gun, instead moving it up and pointing it at his head a few times. Then, according to Sergeant Stoler, Lewis sat up and pointed the gun directly towards him, causing Sergeant Stoler to fear for his life, the lives of fellow officers, and members of the public nearby. Sergeant Stoler then fired his rifle several times.

He continued firing until Lewis stopped moving. Sergeant Stoler then directed a team of other officers and a police canine to approach Lewis’ position with a shield. The officers and canine approached cautiously, eventually securing Lewis with hand cuffs and rendering medical aid.

Lewis was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics who quickly arrived at the scene.The investigation and autopsy revealed that Sergeant Stoler fired seven rounds, three of which struckLewis and killed him.

A loaded .45 caliber handgun was found on the ground next to Lewis’ body. It was determined that Lewis had a blood alcohol concentration of .062 at the time of his death. No controlled substances or alcohol were detected in the blood of Sergeant Stoler.

A more detailed summary of the facts surrounding this incident and evidence obtained during thisinvestigation are contained in the attached memo prepared by the Chief Deputy of the Dakota CountyAttorney’s Office.

Under Minnesota law, the use of deadly force by a peace officer is justified in the line of duty when necessary:

• (1) to protect the peace officer or another person from apparent death or great bodily harm;
• (2) to effect the arrest or capture, or prevent the escape, of a person whom the peace officer knows or has reasonable grounds to believe has committed or attempted to commit a felony involving the use or threatened use of deadly force; or
• (3) to effect the arrest or capture, or prevent escape, of a person whom the officer knows or has reasonable grounds to believe, has committed or attempted to commit a felony if the officer reasonably believes that the person will cause death or great bodily harm if the person’s apprehension is delayed.

Backstrom expressed his sympathy to the family and friends of Jaime Lewis, whose life was lost in this incident. “Although I have concluded that the use of deadly force by this police officer was legally justified in this instance, any loss of life is a tragic occurrence,” Backstrom stated.

Backstrom also expressed his concern for the well-being of the officers involved in this incident and their families as they deal with the process and emotional impact of a life being taken in the line of duty. Backstrom commented, “Law enforcement officers are trained to protect and serve our communities each and every day. Unfortunately, there are times when officers are placed in a situation where they must use deadly force to protect themselves and the public.”

Backstrom thanked the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension which served as the lead investigative agency regarding this incident.

Image via Dave Conner, Flickr, used under Creative Commons