BOISE, Idaho — On Wednesday, the Attorney General (AG) for the State of Idaho, Raúl Labrador, announced that state prosecutors will not pursue criminal charges against the officers who were involved in the shooting of 17-year-old Victor Perez of Pocatello on April 5.
Perez, an autistic teen with developmental disabilities, was shot by officers with the Pocatello Police Department nine times while experiencing a moment of mental distress in his family's backyard. Perez was armed with a kitchen knife at the time of the shooting.
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Officers demanded that Perez drop the knife five times before shooting Perez. Family members have said Perez was non-verbal and may not have understood the officers' repeated requests.
After being shot, Perez was taken to a nearby hospital and placed in a medically induced coma. Six days after the shooting, he was taken off life support and died.
In the wake of the shooting, members of the Pocatello community demanded accountability for what many deemed an unnecessarily violent reaction by the officers to a mental health crisis.
"The public release of the videos of the officers shooting Perez were understandably met with public outrage." - Office of the Attorney General for the State of Idaho
The prosecuting attorney for Bannock County, Ian Johnson, referred the investigation to the Idaho AG for review to determine if criminal charges would be warranted in the case.
According to the Office of the AG, "as the reviewing prosecutor in this matter, our office's role was limited to determining whether the State could prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the officers involved committed a crime and that their use of force was not justified under Idaho law."
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In their findings, the AG determined that the officers should not be criminally charged because they didn't know of Perez's age or disabilities, and "the officers were acting on the information and belief they had at the time that an intoxicated male was trying to stab other people."
A "use of force expert" hired by the state "opined that any reasonable officer in these officers' position would have viewed the unknown male as an immediate threat of death or serious bodily injury at the time the officers started shooting."
"The State would be unable to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the four officers who discharged their weapons were not justified in using deadly force. We will thus not file criminal charges against the officers." - Office of the Attorney General
The state determined that these factors combined would make any forthcoming criminal charges "untenable."
The letter then goes on to answer questions posed by the public regarding the shooting.
While the letter states the officers will not face criminal charges related to their actions, the AG acknowledged "ongoing civil litigation over this critical incident."
The Mayor of Pocatello Brian Blad issued the following statement in response to the AG's letter: “My heart goes out to the Perez family over the loss of Victor. This incident has been difficult for our entire community. In Pocatello we stand together in challenging times. I am confident we will continue to support one another as we move forward.”
