Sarah Okeson

News-Leader

Former Springfield police officer Jason Shuck has offered to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge in the shooting of an unarmed man in May.

The proposed deal with Greene County prosecutors would leave Shuck, 35, who resigned earlier this month from the police department, with no criminal record if he successfully completed two years of unsupervised probation.

The proposed plea agreement also requires him to never work again in a job that requires him to carry a firearm and to surrender his peace officer license. The misdemeanor charge is third-degree assault, which carries a maximum sentence of a year in jail.

"The defendant is adequately punished," said Dan Patterson, the Greene County prosecuting attorney.

Ron Carrier, the associate judge hearing the case, did not immediately approve the proposal, known in legal terms as a suspended imposition of sentence. It came as Shuck appeared at his first court date Tuesday afternoon at what was expected to be a routine arraignment. Few spectators were in the room. The man Shuck shot, Eric David Butts, 27, was not present.

Carrier put off imposing a sentence until Sept. 3, saying he wanted to read the facts of the case and Shuck's record.

"How does a suspended imposition of sentence protect the public after the two years of probation is over?" Carrier asked.

Shuck declined to comment as he left the courtroom.

The hearing came as a handful of people protested outside the courthouse, carrying signs questioning the misdemeanor charge. Jennifer Michaels, who was there with her daughter, said they are also supporting people who have raised questions about a police shooting in Ferguson where an unarmed 18-year-old was killed by police.

"We believe this is not just about racism," Michaels said. "It's about poverty, oppression and a militant police state."

Protestor Scott Youngkin said a regular citizen who shot someone in the back wouldn't be charged with third-degree assault.

"We all know that third-degree assault is the most lenient of charges," he said.

Shuck's attorney, Tyson Martin, said Shuck has been a good police officer with no prior use-of-force complaints.

"He's been a very upstanding member of society," Martin said.

Patterson said he had talked to Butts and his attorney and that they approved of the proposed sentence.

Martin said that Shuck has potential job offers. Carrier asked if those potential job offers could be affected by what sentence he imposed.

"Yes," Shuck said.

Shuck told authorities that he meant to use his Taser when he shot Butts on May 9 near the Walmart Neighborhood Market at 1320 S. Glenstone Ave., as Butts was running away.

Butts, a convicted burglar who had served time in prison, was panhandling at the Walmart. He was wanted on a warrant for failure to appear in court on a parole violation at the time of the shooting. Court records indicate Butts has been diagnosed with mental illnesses including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Only seven prior cases of a suspect being mistakenly shot with a handgun instead of a Taser have been documented, according to Greene County court documents filed in the case. That's out of about 2.2 million uses of a Taser.

Shuck carried his department-issued Glock semiautomatic pistol on his right side and his Taser on his left side. He had to reach across his body with his right hand to draw the Taser, which weighs about a third as much as the handgun, according to documents.

The shooting seriously damaged the intestines of Butts, forcing him to use a colostomy bag. Butts underwent surgery on Aug. 14 to repair the damage and is expected to make a full recovery.

Butts has retained a lawyer, who has said he'll seek damages against the city.