Edmond Officers Cleared Of Wrongdoing In Separate Shooting Incidents

<p>Oklahoma County District Attorney has cleared five Edmond officers of any wrongdoing in two separate shooting incidents.</p>

Wednesday, June 17th 2015, 12:54 pm

By: News 9


Oklahoma County District Attorney has cleared five Edmond officers of any wrongdoing in two separate shooting incidents.

According to the DA's office, 15-year veteran Neil Martin has been cleared of any wrongdoing for shooting and killing 24-year-old Garrett Sandeno.

Police said around 5 p.m. on May 27, a woman called 911 saying her husband, later identified as Sandeno, had several weapons and may try to kill himself. Martin and another officer responded to the home and saw Sandeno in the 1700 block of Ridgecrest Road. He was walking around the area with what the officers thought was a gun at his side.

5/28/2015 Related Story: Police Release New Details In Deadly Edmond Officer-Involved Shooting

According to a report, the officers told Sandeno multiple times to drop his weapon. When the officers were threatened by Sandeno with his weapon, Martin fired two shots, hitting Sandeno one time in the chest.

Police later learned that Sandeno's weapon was a pellet gun. Sandeno was transported to OU Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

In a separate incident, four other officers, Lt. Chad Langley, Officer Brenton Brown, Officer Ben Daves and Officer Matthew Tipton, have also been cleared of any wrongdoing for shooting and injuring 22-year-old Robert Desherow, according to the DA.

6/8/2015 Related Story: More Details Released In Edmond Officer-Involved Shooting

On June 7, Edmond police officers responded to a home in the 7300 block of Sandy Lane. A woman told police that her ex-boyfriend, Desherow, was threatening her and her child.

Desherow barricaded himself, the woman and her child inside the home. The Edmond PD negotiating team responded and tried to talk Desherow out of the house. During the negotiation, police said Desherow pointed a gun at the woman and told her he would kill himself if police arrived.

A short time later, Desherow allowed the woman and her baby to leave. Desherow eventually emerged from the backdoor with a gun to his head. Police said they repeatedly told Desherow to drop the weapon, but he pointed the gun toward the officers, and that's when they opened fire.

Desherow was struck three times. He was transported to OU Medical Center.

DA Prater released the following statement concerning the incidents,

“In both incidents, officers were faced with deadly force before and during their decisions to employ deadly force. The officers gave warning commands to the suspects in an effort to deescalate the situation and to convince the suspects to drop their weapons. Instead, both men decided to engage the officers by pointing their weapons directly at the officers. The officers had every reason to believe their lives were in danger. The officers responded with deadly force in self-defense. After careful review of the facts and circumstances surrounding these shootings, I have determined that the officers' use of deadly force were lawful and justified.”

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