Prosecutor: Idaho Falls police officer’s use of deadly force was justified – Post Register
Idaho Falls Police officer Mitchell Bierma was justified in shooting a fleeing armed suspect on Sept. 11, the Bonneville County Prosecutor’s Office said Friday.
The prosecutor’s finding, written by H. Alayne Bean, chief deputy prosecutor, came after a review of the investigation conducted by the eastern Idaho Critical Incident Task Force and led by the District 6 office of the Idaho State Police.
Multiple witnesses, both law enforcement and civilians, told investigators that 21-year-old Levi Bautista was carrying a gun as he fled on foot from pursuing officers after a vehicle pursuit that followed a report of shots fired at Hurricanes Bar in Idaho Falls.
Days after being shot, Bautista told investigators that after his car was pinned by pursuing officers, he “got out of the car, took off running and since I had a gun in my hand, they shot me.”
The 11-page Critical Incident Task Force Memorandum details a chaotic scene in which multiple officers responded to reports of shots fired and searched for a silver Chrysler 200 that had fled the scene. As Bierma arrived on scene with his lights and sirens activated, he saw a car matching that description run the stop sign at Freeman Avenue and Lomax Street. The vehicle was driven by a suspect later identified as Bautista. Bierma attempted to catch up to Bautista’s vehicle, which he estimated was traveling at nearly 60 mph in a 25 mph zone, the report said.
Other officers joined in the pursuit, and after Bierma initiated a Pursuit Intervention Technique (PIT maneuver) in an unsuccessful attempt to stop Bautista’s car after Bautista had run another stop sign, the suspect was on a collision course with a patrol vehicle driven by officer Brandon Anderson. Anderson, who knew Bierma had received permission to use a PIT maneuver on Bautista’s vehicle, decided to use his vehicle to ram Bautista’s car. Anderson’s vehicle hit the Chrysler on the rear passenger side and Bierma, still in pursuit, hit the vehicle on the rear driver’s side, pinning it.
As Anderson exited his vehicle he saw Bautista with a handgun in his right hand and that the barrel was pointed in his direction, the report said. Bierma also saw the gun and observed that it was equipped with a high-capacity magazine, the report said. Anderson saw Bautista turn toward Bierma while still holding the gun and Anderson ran around the back of the Chrysler to reach Bierma. As he was moving around the back of the vehicle he heard what he thought were two shots fired, the report said.
“Fearing for his life, Officer Bierma opened his door, ducked down and drew his duty weapon,” the report said.
Exiting his vehicle, Bierma temporarily lost sight of Bautista, the report said. Bautista had exited his vehicle and was running west. Bierma yelled at Bautista to drop the gun, the report said, but Bautista instead “looked back over his right shoulder and his right arm and hand came backwards and up.”
Bierma believed Bautista intended to shoot at him or Anderson and Bierma fired four rounds at Bautista.
Multiple witnesses including a bouncer at the bar, several patrons who’d made their way outside, and a resident of a home near where the officer-involved shooting took place told police they saw Bautista running from the officers with something in his hand. Two civilians told police the object in Bautista’s hand was a gun. Two officers who witnessed the shooting also said they saw a gun in Bautista’s hand.
After Bautista was shot he fell to the ground and and dropped the gun with the extended magazine, the report said. Bautista had a Glock Model 19 9mm handgun with a 40-round magazine.
The report said the officers secured the scene and began administering aid to Bautista, who said he couldn’t feel his legs.
Bautista was hit by three bullets, two in his lower back and one in his left shoulder.
He has been hospitalized for nearly two months and was in good condition as of Friday, an Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center spokeswoman said. The report said the latest information that investigators had was that “Bautista still has not regained feeling in one of his legs.”
“After reading the reports, conferring with CITF investigators, reviewing evidence from the incident, and considering all relevant information … we have concluded that there is no evidence to support a criminal charge against Officer Mitchell Bierma,” Bean wrote in the report’s analysis synopsis.
