Prosecutor: No charges because officer thought unarmed man reached for weapon

Prosecutors have decided not to file charges against the Springfield police officer who shot and killed an unarmed man in February, saying the shooting was justified.

Greene County prosecutor Dan Patterson said Friday he would not charge officer Andrew Bath in the Feb. 17 shooting of Michael Ireland because the shooting "was a legally justified use of deadly force in self-defense." The officer says he thought the suspect was reaching for a weapon.

In a Friday letter to Springfield Police Chief Paul Williams, Patterson gave an in-depth narrative of that night and the subsequent investigation. However, despite the probe, much of the key interaction between the officer and the suspect just before the shooting is based on the officer's statements. There is no video footage of that interaction and there were no other witnesses.

Patterson says in the letter that Bath twice used a Taser on Ireland before the shooting. According to the letter, Bath says that Ireland was not complying with his commands and was reaching toward his waistband before Bath shot Ireland through a gate.

In the letter, Patterson says Ireland's toxicology report was positive for oxydocone, morphine and oxymorphone.

Patterson said Bath had reason to believe the "use of deadly force was necessary to protect himself against the imminent danger of death or serious physical injury at the hands of Michael Ireland. Accordingly, under Missouri law, Officer Bath's use of deadly force was a justified use of deadly force in self-defense and not a criminal act."

Ireland's stepsister Christi Stockwell was told by a News-Leader reporter that prosecutors would not be pursuing charges. She said she was stunned and disappointed by the news.

"I can't believe it," Stockwell said. "It's hard for me to understand how it is justified if Michael was unarmed and running."

Joshua Roberts, a lawyer who is representing Michael Ireland's father, said he anticipates the family asking for a federal investigation into the case, and they are considering filing a civil lawsuit against the city.

Roberts read Patterson's letter and said he believes Bath's accounts of the event indicate the shooting was not justifiable.

In the letter, Patterson laid out a timeline of what led to the shooting.

Bath and two other officers, James Whitehead and Michael Walker, were responding to a check person call on Feb. 17 regarding suspicious activity in the area of 1927 W. Division St.

Officer Walker did not observe anyone at 1927 W. Division, but spotted a red car parked near the entrance of a closed business at 2006 W. Division. The following was captured on Walker's dash-mounted camera, but that camera did not capture the shooting or events directly before it:

•When Walker turned his vehicle's lights on, the red car partially pulled out into the road. Michael Ireland emerged from the passenger side of the car and began walking away.

•Walker told Ireland to stop and shined his flashlight on Ireland's back. Ireland began to run.

•Walker radioed for assistance while walking over to make contact with the driver of the red car. Bath's vehicle drove down an alley in pursuit of Ireland.

The next portion of the timeline laid out by Patterson relies on radio communication:

•Bath: "I've got one running"

•Dispatch: "One running, direction of travel"

•Bath: "South on La Fontaine"

•Dispatch: "Clear, southbound on La Fontaine, description?"

•Bath: "Going down alleyway; I believe he hopped a fence"

•Bath: "He's going southbound, now he's doubling back east"

A single gunshot can then be heard on Walker's dash camera. More radio communication:

•Walker: "I'm hearing shots fired."

•Bath: "Shot fired"

•Dispatch: "Clear, shots fired"

•Bath: "I'm stable. He was reaching."

Patterson's report then includes Bath's narrative of what happened:

•Bath was suspicious of a possible crime being committed due to the 911 call, recent crime trends in the area (including vehicle break-ins and thefts), the number of people on the property and the time of day.

•Bath saw Ireland run from Walker after Walker initiated the car stop.

•Bath drove partially down an alley and saw Ireland cross a fence, so he stopped his vehicle and began pursuing Ireland on foot.

•During the pursuit, Bath removed his Taser from its holster.

•Bath and Ireland reached a chain link gate at the northeast corner of 1444 N. Marion at the same time from opposite directions. They were within feet of each other.

•Bath yelled at Ireland, "Stop or I am going to tase you." Ireland replied "okay" but began reaching for his waistband.

•Bath deployed his Taser for five seconds. The probes struck Ireland in the chest, and Ireland fell backward. Bath commanded Ireland to "put your arms out to the side."

•Immediately after the Taser cycle ended, Ireland started to reach down toward his waistband with both hands while Officer Bath continued to command Ireland to put his arms out to the side.

•Bath tased Ireland a second time for five seconds. He moved the Taser from his right hand to his left and drew his gun.

•Bath feared Ireland was reaching for a gun or other weapon. He told Ireland to put his hands to the side and warned him: "If you don't, I am going to shoot you."

•Bath observed Ireland lean up off the ground and again reach toward his waistband.

•Bath told Ireland "Stop or I am going to shoot." Ireland did not stop, and kept reaching toward his waistband. Bath fired one round from his duty weapon, striking Ireland in the chest and killing him.

•Bath stated that he fired his duty weapon because he feared Ireland was going to pull out a gun or other weapon and kill or seriously injure him. Bath said that he could not attempt to control and handcuff Ireland while he was under the power of the Taser because of the chain link gate between them.

Patterson writes that Bath's account of the chase "is corroborated by the physical evidence at the scene including, but not limited to, Officer Walker's dash camera footage and photographs of the scene including footprints left in the snow during the pursuit."

When he came to the gate, Patterson writes, "Bath found himself in a fatal funnel, that is, a confined area with no cover or concealment that limited his tactical options when Ireland refused to comply with Officer Bath's commands."

Patterson also writes that Robert Reed, the driver of the red car that Ireland was in when police arrived, "reported that earlier in the day he and Ireland had crushed up opiate pills and injected them into the veins in their arms." The toxicology report that accompanied Ireland's autopsy was positive for the opiates, Patterson writes: oxydocone, morphine and oxymorphone.

Roberts, the lawyer for Ireland's father, highlights sections of the report he believes will help Ireland's relative in a lawsuit.

"Michael Ireland was laying on his back under the control of a Taser," Roberts said. "We think Officer Bath's account of this incident will make our case."

Roberts said the family has a problem with Springfield police conducting the investigation into their own officer-involved shooting.

"We didn't get a fair investigation in this case," Roberts said. "We got an internal investigation that had a predetermined outcome when this started."

Bath is no longer with the police department and is now living out of state. Police say he had resigned prior to the shooting.

Ireland's shooting came less than a month after Springfield police officer Aaron Pearson was shot in the head while investigating suspicious activity in Springfield. Police Chief Paul Williams has said Bath and Pearson were close friends who were on the same squad.

The Springfield Police Department sent out a statement shortly after Friday's announcement saying it appreciates the prosecutor's thorough and extensive review of the shooting.

Police said in the days following the shooting that Ireland — who was wanted on municipal warrants — ran from police when they arrived to investigate a call regarding suspicious activity on the 1900 block of West Division Street after 10 p.m. on Feb. 17.

Bath eventually caught Ireland and "at some point during the ensuing encounter, the officer shot the suspect one time in the chest and he died at the scene shortly afterward," police said.

Springfield police investigated the shooting and turned over their reports to prosecutors on the week of April 13 for them to begin reviewing. But police spokeswoman Lisa Cox said at the time the department was still waiting on the completed autopsy report and the final testing of physical evidence from the shooting.

Police originally said they would need about 30 days to investigate the matter.

Patterson's letter says the delay in investigating the case was due in some part to an April 21 story in the News-Leader in which attorney Roberts was reported saying there was a witness who heard Ireland say, "I'm done running" prior to the shooting. It took time for police to re-interview witnesses and police eventually determined that claim was not credible.