Prosecutor St Louis cop acted in self-defense in capturing

ST . LOUIS (AP) - The St. Louis police officer who fatally shot a robbery suspect in The month of january acted in self-defense, the prosecutor ruled Monday.



St. Louis Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce released two surveillance videos as she announced her decision not to charge Sgt. Michael Pratt in the shooting associated with 52-year-old Crayton West upon Jan. 17 adopting the robbery of a Kentucky Deep-fried Chicken restaurant.
One Video Smp appears to show West pointing a gun from the clerk before reaching into the cash register and grabbing money. The particular other shows him coming face-to-face by having an arriving officer. He seems to reach into his waistband, pull out there a gun and raise it before being fatally shot.

"A family dropped someone very important to them, and I'm so sorry for loss, " Joyce said in a statement. "I am furthermore thankful that more people were not injured during the course of this incident. "
Joyce pointed to the video and statements from a number of those who were inside plus near the restaurant who told investigators they saw West having a gun. His finger prints were found on the particular counter of the restaurant, she said.
"We possess the unusual advantage with this particular case in that the incident was captured upon surveillance video, " mentioned Joyce. "In addition to brave witnesses prepared to cooperate and the forensic plus physical evidence, it's obvious that the officer within this case was performing to protect himself and those in the restaurant. inch

Police-involved shootings have faced increasing scrutiny in the St. Louis region considering that 18-year-old Michael Brown, who was black and unarmed, was fatally shot throughout a street confrontation with white officer Darren Wilson in nearby Ferguson, Missouri, on Aug. 9, 2014.
A grand jury plus the U. S. Section of Justice declined to prosecute Wilson, who retired in November 2014.
Western was black; Pratt will be white.
Police Chief Mike Dotson said Pratt is a 13-year veteran associated with the department.

"We are usually thankful for the cooperation of witnesses as they provided the insight researchers and prosecutors needed to arrive at their conclusion, " Dotson said in a statement.