Calling the Washington County coroner’s recommendation that a local officer be criminally charged for shooting and killing a man after a police chase in April “a theatrical stunt,” Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh said Friday he stands by an earlier decision that the shooting was justified.
Coroner Timothy Warco on Thursday issued a report stating that Mount Pleasant Township police Officer Tyler Evans was not justified in the fatal shooting of Eduardo Lee Hoover Jr., 38, on April 2.
The shooting followed a miles-long police chase that started in Burgettstown. Mount Pleasant Township and Smith Township police were involved in the chase, which continued on Route 18 and ended in Washington city limits.
According to state police, Hoover slowed down on Jefferson Avenue, allowing officers to get in front and behind his vehicle. He then stopped, put his truck in reverse and slammed into the front of a police car before driving forward and hitting a utility pole, according to reports.
After hitting the pole, Hoover put his truck into reverse again and sped toward the responding officers, prompting them to shoot at Hoover inside the vehicle, state police said.
In May, Walsh determined the use of force was justified.
“I made the decision six months ago,” Walsh said Friday, adding that his office and state police conducting a thorough investigation.
According to Warco, he reviewed Evans’ bodycam video, which shows him putting his car in park, shouting an expletive, getting out of his car and immediately firing two rounds through the rear window of Hoover’s truck, striking him in the head and killing him.
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Walsh said that Warco “cherrypicked” evidence to include in his report and that Warco has never convened an inquest before. He also stated that Warco didn’t have the authority to decide if a crime was committed.
The coroner recommends Evans be charged with involuntary manslaughter, in that he committed an unlawful act in a reckless or grossly negligent manner, in Hoover’s death.
In response to Walsh’s comments, Warco sent Channel 11 a statement that said, in part, that he stands by his findings and conclusions, and that he is “charged with the responsibility to determine whether a criminal act had occurred, and whether the person who committed the act was criminally responsible.”
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