Rapides Parish DA: 2 Pineville officers were justified in April fatal shooting of man
Two Pineville Police Department officers were justified in fatally shooting a man in April because they believed he "had every intention of inflicting immediate death or great bodily harm" to a child he was holding, according to Rapides Parish District Attorney Phillip Terrell.
Terrell released his findings Tuesday, less than a week after the Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office turned over its investigation to his office.
Officers shot 25-year-old Larry Calk on April 23 outside a home in the 2900 block of La. Highway 107. The investigation by the sheriff's office found that Calk was threatening a child with a weapon and refused to drop it when ordered by officers.
Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office: Probe finds man fatally shot by police was threatening child
Initial report: No update Monday morning on fatal shooting by police in Pineville
They had been called to the home because of a family disturbance, according to the sheriff's office, and officers heard Calk threatening the child as they walked to the door. Calk was holding the child at the time officers saw him threatening the child with a weapon.
The sheriff's office turned its report over to Terrell's office May 31. Terrell reviewed the report, which included video and audio evidence that led to the shooting.
Terrell said Sgt. Vincent Deville and Officer Codiak Thompson were under the "clearly reasonable belief" that the child was in imminent danger.
"Thus their actions were completely justified and appropriate under our law," Terrell wrote.
Pineville Chief Darrell Basco said his department would use the report's findings to complete its own internal affairs investigation into the shooting.
"It is a horrible event and day when anyone loses their life, and we pray for the healing of everyone involved in this tragic incident," Basco wrote in a statement. "To that end, we believe the public release of this video does nothing but add to the trauma of the family and officers involved in this event."
This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: DA Phillip Terrell clears 2 Pineville officers in death of Larry Calk
