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July 8, 2014

Prosecutor: No Charges for Deputy Who Killed 8th Grader Holding Pellet Gun 
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In California, local prosecutors say they will not bring criminal
charges against a sheriff's deputy who shot and killed an eighth grader
after mistaking his pellet gun for an assault rifle. The deputy, Erick
Gelhaus, shot 13-year-old Andy Lopez seven times last year in Santa
Rosa. The killing sparked mass protests. But the Sonoma County district
attorney concluded Gelhaus believed he was in imminent danger. In a
statement, an attorney representing the family in a civil suit said the
decision "leaves the family feeling as though Andy had been killed again
today. ... No reasonable officer in such circumstances could believe he
was encountering anything but a teenager with a toy gun on a sunny
afternoon in a residential area." The FBI is still reviewing the
shooting.

 

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