FAIRFIELD, Ohio (AP) - A federal judge has ruled that a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a man fatally shot by an Ohio police officer can go forward.
The Hamilton-Middletown Journal-News reports (https://bit.ly/2n1JiEV ) U.S. District Judge Timothy Black’s recent ruling says there’s enough evidence to proceed with the lawsuit filed by 23-year-old Caleb Surface’s family against Fairfield police officer Scott Conklin.
Conklin shot Surface in January 2014 after Surface tried to break into his father’s Fairfield home. Surface was holding a cordless phone when he was killed.
A grand jury declined to indict Conklin criminally. Fairfield is 17 miles (27 kilometers) north of Cincinnati.
Conklin’s attorneys argued that Surface told him several times he had a gun before he was shot. Black’s ruling says there are statements disputing Conklin’s claim.
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