1. Prosecutor finds Spokane Police officers deputy justified in August shooting that ended standoff with robber who shot at police
2. Prosecutor determines Spokane Police officers deputy justified in August shooting that ended standoff with robber who shot at police.
Accident – Death – Obituary News :
On June 14, Spokane law enforcement officers were found to be justified in shooting and killing a man in August 2022 after a standoff in which he fired at police, according to the Spokane County Prosecutor.
The incident occurred following a nearly five-hour confrontation with Dominic Shears, who was wanted in connection with a robbery earlier in the evening.
Spokane Police detectives, in collaboration with federal agents from the Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Drug Enforcement Agency, were conducting surveillance on a suspected drug dealer, as stated in a news release from the prosecutor’s office.
The officers tracked the dealer to a Spokane Valley hotel, where a blue Econoline van carrying three men, including Shears, pulled into the parking lot just before 1 a.m.
Shears was identified as the driver, and the men proceeded to rob the dealer at gunpoint before fleeing on Interstate 90 towards Spokane.
Officers Jacob Siegel and Scott Lesser pursued Shears into downtown Spokane after he dropped off the other two men.
The two accomplices, Christopher Gooch and Christopher Jones, were apprehended on charges of first-degree robbery and later pleaded guilty in federal court. Gooch received a four-year prison sentence, while Jones was sentenced to more than five years in federal prison.
Shears crashed his vehicle near E. 3rd Avenue and S. Sheridan Street and engaged in a shootout with the officers at around 1 a.m., resulting in Siegel sustaining minor injuries. Both officers returned fire.
Following the exchange, additional officers were dispatched to the scene, and negotiations commenced.
Despite multiple attempts to peacefully resolve the situation, including the use of less-than-lethal force, Shears refused to surrender. He eventually exited his vehicle with a firearm in hand, prompting officers Robert Riggles, Brandon Lynch, and Spokane County Sheriff’s Deputy Derek McNall to open fire at approximately 6 a.m.
Shears sustained two gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene.
An investigation revealed that Shears was armed with a Glock .45 containing a live round in the chamber. Blood tests indicated the presence of alcohol, caffeine, ephedrine, phenylpropanolamine, amphetamine, and methamphetamine in his system.
Spokane County Prosecutor Larry Haskell concluded that the officers were justified in their use of deadly force, marking the first time in over two decades that the prosecutor’s office has not found fault with any instance of deadly force.
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“Prosecutor finds Spokane Police officers deputy justified in shooting”
“Spokane Police officers deputy justified shooting ended standoff robber shot at police”.
