Prosecutors: Washington County deputy fired unnecessarily after peaceful negotiation

Video evidence played in court Wednesday in the manslaughter trial of a Washington County deputy showed that he fired without warning at a suicidal man who was in the middle of negotiations with another deputy.

Prosecutors told the jury during opening statements that deputy Brian Krook, 31, ignored his training when he fatally shot Benjamin Evans on April 12, 2018. Defense attorneys said that Evans wanted to commit suicide-by-cop, and that Krook's actions were "courageous."

"Mr. Evans said over and over and over again that he is not there to hurt officers," said Assistant Ramsey County Attorney Andrew R.K. Johnson, adding that Evans never pointed his gun at anyone else.

Defense attorney Paul Engh told jurors Evans had a blood alcohol content of 0.204.

"This was a suicide-by-cop," Engh said. "No one was going to talk him out of it."

A video merging footage from a squad car with audio from Krook's body camera showed that Krook fatally shot and killed Evans, 23, without alerting his colleagues or giving Evans a warning.

At the time, Evans was speaking with Washington County deputy Joshua Ramirez, whose testimony Wednesday turned what prosecutors had praised as good police work into a contradictory take on the incident.

The video was "enhanced" because the scene was dark. Only Evans' general movements could be seen as he knelt in an intersection in downtown Lake Elmo around midnight. He was the only person visible until the end.

In the video, Washington County Sheriff's Sgt. Michelle Folendorf said, "Let's keep him talking."

"Keep going or should we try the less lethal … ?" Krook asked, referring to a shotgun that shoots beanbag rounds.

Folendorf instructed officers to keep talking with Evans, who was suicidal and holding a semiautomatic handgun to his head after learning that his friend was dating his ex-girlfriend.

Ramirez told Evans he didn't want to shoot him and that Evans understood police tactics. Evans had worked as an EMT and was in the probationary stage of becoming a Lake Elmo firefighter.

About 35 minutes into the 39-minute encounter, Krook said, "[Expletive] he does that again," referring to Evans turning his torso left and right while holding his handgun up to his right temple.

"Ramirez, I'm getting uncomfortable with him turning his head just so you know," Krook said.

Ramirez, who did not seem to respond to Krook, continued the negotiation.

"You're doing your job," Evans said. "I'm asking you to help me talk to [the ex-girlfriend]."

"Yep," Ramirez answered.

Evans was in the middle of responding when Krook fired four shots without warning. Several officers who were off screen, including Krook and Ramirez, rushed over to Evans, who was slumped on the ground, and ordered him to drop the gun.

"I'm kicking it," Krooks says, referring to the gun still in Evans' hand.

Krook, who prosecutors said was 2 to 3 feet from Evans at the time, took a few steps back and fired three more times. Evans was struck four times: twice in the chest, once in the side and once in the leg. No other deputies fired.

Ramirez testified that he thought Evans was "obviously in crisis" and needed help. Johnson in his opening statements applauded Ramirez's negotiations, noting that he persuaded Evans to surrender his gun's magazine.

Ramirez testified that he felt he was making progress with Evans even though it was a "roller coaster" at times. But he also said that although he previously told a grand jury that Evans' actions never gave him cause to fire, he now felt that some of Evans' actions were threatening, such as turning his torso.

Assistant Ramsey County Attorney Thomas Hatch pressed him.

"Isn't it true that you did not feel any immediate threat … ?" Hatch asked.

"I didn't pull the trigger, so I guess I didn't," Ramirez said.

Krook's attorneys have said he will testify at the trial, which is expected to last three weeks.

Chao Xiong • 612-673-4391