Case against WSU student dropped

Emily Pearce, Moscow-Pullman Daily News, Moscow, Idaho
·2 min read

Apr. 9—The Whitman County Prosecutor's Office has thrown out a criminal case against a Washington State University student who elicited use of a firearm by a campus officer.

The incident is being described as an attempted suicide, according to Whitman County Prosecutor Denis Tracy.

He decided to drop 20-year-old John Bazan's case because of mental health issues. Tracy said Bazan had written a suicide note prior to the event.

After his initial appearance in court March 28, he was released and underwent in-patient mental treatment at a hospital, Tracy said. He let the case go so Bazan could receive uninterrupted mental health treatment ordered by the court.

Bazan was arrested March 27 as officers investigated a report of a man with a knife at the Global Scholars residence hall. It was later determined that Bazan had reported himself as the one with the weapon.

Officers contacted Bazan on the fourth floor and found him concealing his hands in his sweatshirt. He began to move toward officers, ignoring instructions to stop and show his hands.

Police tried backing up to maintain a safe distance, but he kept advancing. One officer tried to deploy a stun gun but it was ineffective. Bazan kept moving toward officers, who removed his hands from his sweatshirt in an aggressive manner.

An officer, identified as WSU Officer Dillon Tiedeman-Mueller, fired his weapon but missed Bazan. He continued to move closer and another officer used a stun gun on him.

Police arrested Bazan on multiple counts, including third-degree assault, obstructing an officer and resisting arrest. These were dismissed after Tracy dropped the case.

Tiedeman-Mueller has been placed on administrative leave and will remain there while the the Critical Incident Investigative Response Team, of Palouse Area Law Enforcement, conducts an independent investigation.

Tiedeman-Mueller has been a WSU police officer for two and a half years and was previously a Latah County Sheriff's deputy for three and a half years.

Pearce can be reached at epearce@dnews.com