By Andy Hoffman
The Hawk Eye
BURLINGTON, Iowa - Two Burlington police officers were cleared Thursday of any wrong doing in the Oct. 1 fatal police shooting of a 27-year-old man on South Hill.
Officer Christopher “Chip” Chiprez, the officer who fired the fatal shot killing Marquis “Bubba” Jones, was acting within Iowa law, Scott Brown, an assistant Iowa state attorney general, said in a seven-page report released Thursday afternoon detailing the incident.
“Marquis Jones left Officer Chiprez no other alternative than to shoot under the circumstances,” Brown said in his statement. “The death of Marquis Jones is determined to be justifiable homicide under the laws of the state of Iowa. The Iowa Attorney General’s Office considers the officer involved investigation closed. No criminal charges are justified or warranted against Officer Chiprez or Officer (Josh) Riffel.”
Riffel had been on the force since May and was being field-trained be Chiprez when the shooting occurred.
Brown said in his report three independent witnesses in the area at the time of the shooting saw Jones carrying a handgun as he attempted to flee the officers following a traffic stop.
However, Brown said in his report there were no witnesses to the actual shooting of Jones besides the two officers and the victim.
“Based upon a complete review of the case with the Iowa Division of Criminal investigation and a full review of the facts and circumstances surrounding the death of Marquis Jones and the actions of Officer Chiprez in firing his weapon, it is determined that Officer Chiprez was legally justified ... in using deadly force,” Brown said. “Officer Chirpez was confronted with a direct and deadly threat posed by Jones toward himself, officer Riffel and potential bystanders.”
Police Chief Doug Beaird issued a brief statement and also released portions of the police body camera and dash board videos of the incident. The videos that were released stopped short of showing the actual shooting.
“The City and its officers fully cooperated with the investigation,” Beaird said Thursday. “The City encourages members of the public to review Special Assistant Attorney General Brown’s findings, which state the date, time, specific location, and immediate facts and circumstances surrounding the officer-involved shooting.
Beaird said the officers are expected to return to full duty in the near future.
“In addition to Special Assistant Attorney General Brown’s findings, although not required under Iowa law, in an effort to promote transparency, the city is providing the public with the body worn camera videos from Officers Chiprez and Riffel that contain the immediate facts and circumstances surrounding the shooting. In addition to the body-worn camera videos, the City is providing the public with the dash camera video from the officers’ patrol vehicle.”
Information contained in Brown’s report include the following facts and statements:
• Chiprez fired his weapon eight times. Only one shot struck Jones. Riffel did not discharge his weapon.
• Jones died from a single gunshot wound to the chest and abdomen area. That was the only bullet that struck him.
• Jones did not fire any shots from a .45 caliber Glock pistol found at the scene.
• The officers conducted the initial traffic stop because of loud music coming from Jones’ vehicle. The officers were unaware Jones was driving the vehicle and also did not know he had active warrants out for his arrest.
• Three independent witnesses, two young males on bicycles and man inside a residence nearby, reported seeing Jones with a handgun as police chased him.
• Jones ignored repeated orders from police to “stop and get on the ground.” At several points during the chase, the officers lost sight of Jones and of each other.
• At one point, Riffel tackles Jones and the two men struggle. During the struggle, Riffel observed Jones to be in possession of a handgun.
• Riffel continued to struggle with Jones over the handgun, but was unable to get control of it. When it became apparent he wasn’t going to be able to get the handgun away from Jones, he made a “tactical decision” to create space between him and Jones.
“When Riffel gained separation, he informed Chiprez (who was coming around the corner of a house) that Jones was armed, saying: ‘He’s got a gun. He’s got a gun Chip.’”
• By the time Chiprez confronted Jones again, he did not know if he was still armed or had discarded the weapon.
• The officers continued to tell Jones to drop the weapon. At one point, Chiprez fired seven shots, but none of those shots are thought to have struck Jones.
• Jones then continued to flee, running through an alley near Maple Street and enter a fenced in backyard where Chiprez spotted him again. Several times during the chase, Jones fell to the ground, but got back up and continued to flee.
“Chiprez reports that he observed Jones laying in the backyard on his back. Chiprez reports that Jones started to rise and he ordered him to stop. As Jones continued to rise he made a motion with his hands at chest level. Chiprez reports that in his mind Jones was still armed and as he viewed Jones’ hand movements, he made the decision to fire an additional shot.”
• Police body cameras then record Jones stating, “You shot me.”
• Soon after the shooting, officers located the black bag in the yard behind a residence at 619 Maple St., several yards from where the incident ended. The gun is not visible in the yard until a person is within a few feet from where it was located.
“It is evident from the discussion (on the body camera videos) of the officers while in the backyard near Jones that neither Chiprez or Riffel knew that the gun had been dropped in the yard at 619 Maple Street by Jones,” the report states.
• Reports that Jones was shot in the back are false.
• There is no credible evidence Jones had his hands in the air or made any attempts to surrender.
In addition to the statements officers gave to DCI special agents and statements of witnesses in the area at the time of the shooting, investigators also viewed police body camera videos of the two officers and the dash board camera before reaching the conclusion Chiprez’ actions were justified.
Chiprez, a veteran of the police force, was named officer of the year in 2015 for saving two people’s lives in separate incidents in 2014. Fellow officers voted to award Chiprez the Lt. Steve Casady Officer of the Year Award.
Riffel joined the police force in May. At the time of the shooting, he was riding with Chiprez as part of his field training. Chiprez is a certified training officer with the police department.
The officers remain on paid administrative leave.
In the wake of the Oct. 1 shooting, patrol cars will have two officers in them, Police Chief Doug Beaird told the city council during the day after the incident. He did not say if or when the department would return to one officer per vehicle.
Des Moines County District Court records indicate Jones was released from prison in December 2015 and placed on parole. He was scheduled to be discharged from parole in March 2018.
Jones death was the first police-related shooting in Burlington since Autumn Steele was fatally shot by police during a domestic disturbance outside her residence in January 2015.
Des Moines County Attorney Amy Beavers cleared Burlington Officer Jesse Hill of any wrong doing of following an investigation by the DCI. Hill has returned to the police force, where he continues to work in the patrol division.
©2017 The Hawk Eye (Burlington, Iowa)