A Westminster police sergeant was legally justified to shoot a man who was threatening to kill a woman with a gun, prosecutors ruled.
Sgt. Roger Cox will not face any criminal charges in connection to the Sept. 26 shooting at an apartment complex in the 7100 block of Hooker Street, according to Young found that Cox reasonably feared for his life and the safety of others when the sergeant fired his weapon.
Cox and other Westminster police officers arrived at the apartment complex after a woman called 911 and reported that her husband, Dakota Samuels, was on his way to kill her, the letter states. Samuels arrived at the apartment complex while the woman was on the phone with dispatchers. Samuels assaulted the woman and pointed a gun at her face, the woman told investigators.
Cox arrived at the apartment as Samuels walked out of the apartment, brandishing the gun and dragging the woman with him. Samuels began to raise his gun at Cox, who fired his shotgun at Samuels, according to the letter.
“Sgt. Cox believed the male was going to shoot him and that his life was in danger,” the letter states. “He believed the male would kill the female as well.”
Cox fired two more times as Samuels fled. Another officer encountered Samuels running from the apartment complex and held him at gunpoint until an ambulance arrived, the letter states.
Samuels was wounded in multiple places from the shotgun blasts but survived, according to the letter. He faces multiple charges in connection to the incident, including assault, aggravated robbery, felony menacing and tampering with a witness.
