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Prosecutor: Fatal shooting during traffic stop justified

Posted May 26, 2017 7:00 am

The Associated Press

VALPARAISO, Ind. (AP) - A prosecutor says a northwestern Indiana police officer acted in self-defense when he shot a man during a traffic stop.

Porter County Prosecutor Brian Gensel released a statement Friday saying Portage Officer Grant Crizer was justified in shooting 39-year-old William Spates of Portage on April 22.

Gensel says Spates had been released on bond from jail hours earlier following a domestic violence arrest during which Spates expressed thoughts about not wanting to live and asked the arresting officer what it would take to shoot him.

Gensel says that during the traffic stop, Spates tried to run over Crizer, and the officer fired eight shots through the windshield and passenger window.

Portage Police Chief Troy Williams says his department's Shooting Review Board also found the shooting to be justified.

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Information from: The Times, http://www.nwitimes.com

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