VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) - The Clark County prosecutor says a Vancouver police officer acted lawfully when he fatally shot a 16-year-old boy in February.
The Columbian reports Police Cpl. Roger Evans shot Clayton Joseph while responding to calls about a domestic violence assault at an apartment complex Feb. 19.
Clark County Prosecutor Tony Golik wrote in his report that Evans clearly stated in an interview with detectives that the moment he fired his gun, he believed Joseph was an adult man who’d just threatened people with a knife, and that he was about to be stabbed himself.
Golik wrote that physical evidence supported what Evans said.
Police say Joseph’s older brother had assaulted someone and that the younger Joseph confronted people with a knife because they called police.
Evans says the teen refused his order to drop the knife and lunged at him before Evans fired.
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Information from: The Columbian, http://www.columbian.com
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