PHOENIX (AP) - A Mesa police officer has been charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of an unarmed man at a hotel two months ago, prosecutors said Friday.
The case marks a rare prosecution of a police officer in a deadly shooting in Arizona and comes at a time when prosecutors around the country are being criticized for not bringing charges against law enforcement in shootings.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office said Officer Philip Mitchell Brailsford has been summoned to answer the direct complaint at an initial court appearance on March 15.
“After carefully reviewing the relevant facts and circumstances, we have determined that the use of deadly physical force was not justified in this instance,” County Attorney Bill Montgomery said in a statement.
Mesa police officials said they completed their investigation into the shooting on Feb. 9 and turned the case over to the Montgomery’s office for review.
They said they’re continuing to cooperate with the attorney’s office in the case and declined further comment.
After the shooting, police officials didn’t identify the officer who fired the fatal shot, saying only that the officer has been with the department for more than two years and was put on administrative duty per protocol.
It was unclear Friday if Brailsford has an attorney yet.
Police responded to the La Quinta Inn & Suites on Jan. 18 after guests at the hotel reported seeing a man point a rifle outside a fifth-floor window.
A man later identified as Daniel Shaver was ordered to exit the room and crawl toward the officers.
As he moved toward the officers on his hands and knees, Shaver allegedly made a motion with his right hand toward his waistline.
“Officer Brailsford then fired five shots, striking Shaver throughout his body and killing him,” county prosecutors said.
Police said no weapons were recovered from Shaver’s body but they recovered two pellet rifles in the hotel room, which they later determined were related to his pest control job.
Laney Sweet, of Granbury, Texas, said she hired attorneys to look into the death of her 26-year-old husband. She said Shaver was the father of her two girls, ages 6 and 3.
A Phoenix television station, ABC15, reported Friday night that Sweet has filed a $35 million notice of claim - a precursor to a lawsuit - against the Mesa Police Department, citing excessive force and wrongful death.
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