Two Vancouver police officers who fired their weapons in April 2018 while attempting to arrest a man wanted for multiple alleged incidents — including the discharge of a gun and ramming a police vehicle — were legally justified in using force, according to a review by the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Officers Katie Endresen and Chris Simmons fired three shots at Brad Lee Reeves that didn’t hit him or cause any injuries, Prosecuting Attorney Tony Golik wrote in an Aug. 30 letter to Vancouver Police Chief James McElvain. Reeves, 30, was arrested shortly after the shooting and found to be unarmed. Golik’s letter was recently obtained by The Columbian.
Vancouver police responded around 8:50 p.m. April 4 to a residence in the 2100 block of East 26th Street for a report of a suspicious vehicle. Officers determined the vehicle to be stolen and that Reeves was inside the Rose Village residence, according to a Vancouver police press release. When officers approached, Reeves fled on foot, the release said.
Reeves was wanted for first-degree assault after allegedly firing several shots at another person less than a week earlier, Golik wrote in the letter. Reeves had also eluded police in stolen vehicles several times in the days leading up to the shooting and once rammed a patrol vehicle, Golik wrote.
Officers responding to the residence were advised that Reeves should be considered armed and dangerous, Golik wrote.
After Reeves fled, Southwest Washington Regional SWAT was activated along with all available Vancouver police officers. Endresen, Simmons and Officer Dale Barnette were positioned on the west side of the residence as police searched for Reeves.
The search lasted several hours in the residential neighborhood as police prevented residents from leaving their homes. SWAT officers operated out of an armored vehicle, police canines waited next to their handlers and aircraft flew overhead. Officers were under the impression that Reeves had not been located and that the search would be over soon. But Reeves suddenly appeared in front of the three officers on the other side of a chain-link fence.
Endresen yelled “Show me your hands” several times as loud as she could, Golik wrote. The officer reported that Reeves didn’t comply and, based partially on his recent alleged crimes, believed that he was going to draw a weapon. Endresen then fired two rounds, neither of which struck Reeves.
Simmons reported seeing Endresen draw her weapon and hearing her commands. He then saw Reeves crouched down and appearing to reach toward his waistband when ordered to show his hands, Golik wrote. Simmons fired one round that also missed Reeves.
“Officer Simmons reported he fired because he believed Reeves was an imminent threat to him and his fellow officers,” Golik wrote.
The officers stopped firing as Reeves raised his hands, Golik wrote. Reeves was arrested shortly afterward.
The Regional Major Crimes Team investigated the shooting with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office taking the lead. When the probe was completed, the case was referred to prosecutors for review, which is standard protocol.
Officers’ beliefs that Reeves would produce a weapon when he didn’t initially comply were reasonably justified, Golik wrote.
“The investigation of this incident supports a finding that both Officer Endresen and Officer Simmons reasonably feared for their lives and the lives of their fellow officers when they fired their weapons at Brad Reeves,” Golik wrote. “The evidence in this case is clear that the officers fired when they reasonably feared for their lives and the evidence also shows that the officers stopped firing as soon as they realized that Mr. Reeves was not a threat to their lives.”
After the arrest, Reeves was booked into the Clark County Jail on an outstanding warrant and on suspicion of two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of eluding police and one count of driving with a suspended license. A trial is scheduled for July 29.
