Four police officers in Idaho who shot and killed an autistic, nonverbal teenage boy holding a knife across a chain-link fence in April were deemed justified in their actions, as per the state attorney general. Consequently, they will not face criminal charges.
Seventeen-year-old Victor Perez fell into a coma for a week before passing away on April 12, after enduring surgeries to remove nine bullets and having his leg amputated. The incident, which took place in Pocatello, located in southeast Idaho, was recorded on video and led to public outcry. Community members questioned why the officers resorted to gunfire merely 12 seconds after leaving their vehicles.
The Idaho Attorney General, Raúl Labrador, was approached by the Bannock County Prosecutor’s Office to assess whether the officers’ actions constituted a crime and if their level of force was warranted. Labrador stated that the investigation revealed the officers were unaware of Perez’s age or disabilities, only receiving information about an intoxicated individual wielding a knife and posing a threat.
Labrador explained in a letter to the prosecutor, “Believing there was an imminent danger of stabbing, officers moved toward the fence, ready to act swiftly to protect others from harm.” He justified the officers’ decision to approach the fence, as it left them vulnerable to a knife attack from someone directly on the other side.
“Under Idaho law, the officers were not required to retreat before deploying deadly force,” Labrador mentioned, leading to the conclusion that prosecuting them criminally would not be feasible. Thus, no charges will be filed against the officers.
Ben Nisenbaum, an attorney from Oakland, California, representing the family in a wrongful death claim against Pocatello, expressed the family’s profound disappointment with the attorney general’s resolution, contending that the officers should have retreated.
“At the end of the day, anyone responding to that situation would know he was developmentally disabled by the way he was acting. It was obvious,” Nisenbaum told The Associated Press in a phone interview. “Stepping away was what a reasonable person would do.”
Email and phone messages seeking comment from Pocatello Police Chief Roger Schei about the attorney general’s decision and whether the officers faced discipline were not immediately returned.
Perez, who is autistic, has an abnormal gait and other medical conditions had managed to get ahold of a large kitchen knife on April 5 and was walking around the yard swinging it. Video shows his grandfather, mother and 16-year-old sister trying to take it from him.
A person who saw the struggle called 911, saying it appeared the person was intoxicated and was trying to stab people. Three officers arrived and approached the backyard carrying Glock handguns, and a fourth officer had a beanbag shotgun. The sister waved her arms at the officers and shouted, but they focused their attention on Perez, who was lying on the ground, the attorney general’s letter said.
They shouted for Perez to drop the knife, and he got up on his knees. He pointed the blade to the sky as he fell forward, catching himself with his hand. He stood up and stepped toward the officers and they opened fire — releasing fourteen bullets and a beanbag shot. Investigators estimated the distance between them and Perez was about 12 feet (3.6 meters).
The Eastern Idaho Critical Incident Task Force investigated the shooting. The autopsy said the cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds. The officers gave interviews to the task force, but they declined to speak with the attorney general’s office, the letter said. Instead, they sent audio recordings and transcripts of interviews they gave to a third party, the letter said.
After reviewing the material collected, the attorney general said they won’t file criminal charges against the officers “because the state would be unable to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers’ use of force was not justified.”
