An Oklahoma City Police Officer is Charged in the Alleged Fatal Shooting of Dustin Pigeon, who was Threatening Suicide
On November 15, 2017, suicidal 29-year-old Dustin Robert Pigeon was allegedly shot and killed by an officer with the Oklahoma City Police Department. Court files show that on Tuesday, December 5, 2017, in connection with that fatal police shooting, the officer who allegedly shot Pigeon faces a complaint of second-degree murder or the alternative of manslaughter in the first degree. Early Tuesday, the officer was booked on the complaint through the Oklahoma County Jail.
The alleged police shooting happened at about 2:40 a.m. at Parkview Village Homes, where officers responded to a call of a suicidal person. Upon arrival, police officers found that Pigeon was threatening to light himself on fire, and he was holding a bottle of lighter fluid and a lighter. Officers tried to talk Pigeon into dropping the lighter fluid, but he failed to comply. According to court documents, a bean bag shotgun was deployed by Officer Troy Nitzky, and the bean bag struck Pigeon in the left hip. Immediately after that, an officer allegedly fired his handgun at Pigeon five times. Although Pigeon was provided with immediate medical attention, he died at the scene.
According to David Prater, Oklahoma County District Attorney, after an investigation, two of the officers at the scene were found to have acted appropriately. They used non-lethal methods to deal with the situation. The third officer, however, was found to have allegedly used excessive force and broke the law when he fired his weapon.
The sentence for second degree murder is 10 years to life in prison. The sentence for the alternative first degree manslaughter charge is 4 years to life.
Since the incident occurred, the police officer who has now been criminally charged has been on paid administrative leave.
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