Justin Douglas
Role at the time: Chairman of the Dauphin County Board of Commissioners
Response to this claim
Dauphin County Commissioner Justin Douglas said the publicly available video appears inconsistent with the Department of Justice deadly-force policy, which permits deadly force only in narrowly defined circumstances involving an imminent threat.
“Whatever crimes someone may have committed, and whatever charges they may face, fleeing from law enforcement is not punishable by death. The use of deadly force must always be justified. ... What we see in the video appears inconsistent with the U.S. Department of Justice's Policy 1-16.200, Use of Deadly Force and Prohibited Restraining Techniques, which permit such force only in narrowly defined circumstances involving an imminent threat. To truly serve justice, I believe this situation warrants a thorough, independent, and transparent investigation.”
Press release from Commissioner Justin Douglas, chairman of the Dauphin County Board of Commissioners, issued the day after the July 1 shooting. The copy cited here is hosted on the website of WHP (CBS 21).
Why we used this label
The reference point is the officer's decision to fire. Douglas says the footage appears inconsistent with the Justice Department's standard for deadly force and that fleeing does not warrant death, which rejects the firing rather than only questioning how ICE described the encounter.