Jamar Clark Shooting: Internal Investigations Concluded, Police Chief Reveals Findings

The Jamar Clark shooting investigation of two Minneapolis police officers was concluded Friday, the Chicago Tribune is reporting. Chief Janee Harteau revealed that the two officers did not violate departmental polices and were right to use deadly force which led to the death of Jamar Clark.

The Jamar Clark shooting occurred November 2015 when the 24-year-old black man was involved in an altercation with Officers Dustin Schwarze and Mark Ringgenberg.

An investigation into the Jamar Clark shooting revealed that both officers were responding to a case of assault and found the 24-year-old man getting in the way of paramedics trying to help the female victim. The officers had tried to calm Jamar down, but a struggled ensued.

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Investigators said Ringgenberg wrestled Clark to the ground when he refused to be handcuffed, but the 24-year-old man managed to gain the upper hand and wound up getting on top of the officer. He was shot in the head by Schwarze after he made a play for his partner’s gun.

According to a CNN report, in the build-up to the Jamar Clark shooting, Ringgenberg felt his gun move from his right hip to the small of his back. The officer said when he reached for the holstered gun; he felt the whole hand of the 24-year-old man on his weapon.

The officer said he shouted at his partner “He’s got my gun.”

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Schwarze had dropped the handcuffs he was holding and put his gun close to Clark’s face and told him to let go of his partner’s weapon or he would be shot.

Schwarze told investigators querying him over the shooting the Jamar Clark shooting, the 24-year-old had looked at him and said he was ready to die. The police officer said at that point “only thing I could think of to do was to save our lives and anyone else in the immediate area so I pulled the trigger.”

The encounter did last up to 60 seconds. Jamar Clark died less than 24 hours after being on life support at the hospital.

A BBC report revealed that City Police Chief Janee Harteau supported the actions of the Minneapolis officers in the Jamar Clark shooting, adding that they would not face any criminal charges.

“The officers will not be charged criminally and we have concluded there were no violations of MPD policy…I have concluded these officers did not dictate the outcome of this incident. This was an outcome no one wanted… I support the actions of Officers Ringgenberg and Schwarze the night of Nov. 15.”

In justifying her decision, the police chief revealed that the DNA of the 24-year-old man was found on Ringgenberg’s holster and gun. She also pointed out that Jamar Clark had refused to remove his hands from his pockets, which forced Ringgenberg to take him to the ground, an action which spiraled out of control and validated the use of fatal force.

Albert Goins, attorney for Jamar Clark’s family said his clients were shocked and frustrated by the decision reached in the Jamar Clark shooting. He promised to file a civil law suit because his clients were not satisfied with the investigation. He pointed out that he was not surprised how things turned out, given the nature of how Jamar Clark quickly lost his life.

“We’re not impressed. So far as I can see this was not a thorough or full-fledged internal investigation … they took this young man’s life in under 60 seconds … they took this man’s life without cause. They weren’t going to in any way implicate themselves in any wrong doing.”

Bob Kroll, head of the police union, hailed the decision, adding that the officers had been relegated to desk duty ever since the Jamar Clark shooting and would soon return to patrols.

The killing of Clark led to a stand-off between police and protesters. According to the New York Daily Times, police had to resort to chemical irritants after protesters turned violent and started hurling bricks and bottles at officers trying to keep the peace after the Jamar Clark shooting.

[Featured Image by Jim Mone/AP Images]