Orem police officers justified in killing of car thief

Orem police officers justified in killing of car thief

A police officer was in pursuit of a car thief.  After a lengthy chase on a winter’s night, the man abandoned the stolen car and began to run away.  The officer chased him.  When the officer was within six feet of the car thief, the thief turned and assumed a three-point shooter’s stance with what appeared to be a pistol in his hand.  While backing up to seek cover, the officer fired two shots – one of which hit the car thief in the hip.  In the meantime, another officer had arrived on the scene.  This officer shot the car thief two times – killing him.  A wrongful death claim was filed against the officers.  We represented the officers which resulted in a defense verdict for both officers following a two-week jury trial.

For more information contact: Andrew M. Morse