A veteran Shakopee police officer's actions were justified last fall when he fatally shot a man who pointed a gun at him, the Scott County Attorney's Office has ruled.
The shooting occurred on the night of Nov. 9 at the front door of the home of the man, James P. Hanchett, 61, who later died at a nearby hospital.
The officer, 12-year veteran Thor Carlson, and another officer in her first month on the job and being trained by Carlson were at the home in the 800 block of Apgar Street in response to a fire alarm call and in full uniform.
Hanchett came to the front door after both officers knocked, and they saw "a gun being pointed directly at Officer Carlson," the report said, citing the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension's investigation.
Carlson fired several shots in response and struck Hanchett in the head and elsewhere.
"Given the facts of this situation," County Attorney Ron Hocevar said in his report released Friday, "this office concludes that the officers appropriately exercised the use of deadly force" within the law.
Carlson and his trainee, McKenzie Lampman, were equipped with body-worn cameras. The devices were not activated initially because the call was for a fire alarm, the report said.
The cameras were activated immediately after Carlson shot Hanchett. This allowed the cameras to capture the previous 30 seconds without sound and then the remainder of the incident with sound and video after the gunfire.
