By Carolyn Komatsoulis
The Idaho Statesman
MERIDIAN, Idaho — Last January, Jeremiah Gaver told police that he thought they’d kill him.
He was pursued after an Ada County sheriff’s deputy saw him looking into backyards and walking around businesses, all while wearing a tarp, according to the Meridian Police Department, which led the Critical Incident Task Force investigation into the shooting.
Law enforcement assured him that he was going to be OK, the report said.
Gaver kept saying he didn’t want to die, according to the report. “No, no one’s gonna shoot ya. Stop saying that, OK?” was one of the responses from law enforcement.
But after he didn’t comply with a host of commands and questions “for almost a half hour,” according to a news release Wednesday from the Ada County Sheriff’s Office, and then stabbed two K9 dogs in the course of avoiding police who had tasers and a bean bag shotgun, five law enforcement officers opened fire.
Gaver, 37, died at the scene.
Meridian police turned their CITF investigation over to Owyhee County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Topmiller, whose legal review determined that none of the five officers should be charged.
“Based on this comprehensive assessment, I find that the deputies’ actions in shooting Gaver were legally justified under Idaho law,” Topmiller wrote in a letter to Ada County.
Deputy Colton McKone initially tried to make contact with Gaver, the report said. Gaver didn’t respond to him, and then refused to follow commands, including to show police his hands as more law enforcement arrived to deal with the situation in the area of Amity and Cole roads.
Eventually, officers determined that Gaver was resisting and obstructing, and McKone informed him that he was under arrest and going to be detained, according to the report.
Two bean bag rounds were fired, and Ada County Deputy Jon McGee deployed his dog Astrid, who attempted to bite Gaver. However, Gaver made some movements and she disengaged, the report said. Multiple officers in the report said that they didn’t realize Gaver stabbed her.
Gaver ran away, but Astrid kept trying to engage him, according to the report. However, she disengaged after she was hit by a bean bag, and Astrid also got tangled in taser wires, the report said.
Multiple officers tried to use tasers on Gaver, but he kept using a cane he was carrying under the tarp to hit the wires away, the report said. Gaver then fell to the ground, according to the Ada County news release.
Boise Police Officer Connor Rush sent out his K9 Meko, who bit Gaver, the report said. As Gaver stabbed the dog, Rush moved forward to try to stop him. However, Gaver swung the knife toward Rush, who retreated, authorities said.
Rush told investigators the stabbing was “painful to see happen.”
“Officer Rush said he didn’t give it that much deep thought in the moment, but his intention was to do something to get the suspect to stop stabbing his dog and get the knife out of his hands,” the report said.
Gaver began to get to his feet with the knife, and four deputies — Jonathon Faddis, Michael MacLeod, McKone and Keith Montague — discharged their weapons, along with Boise Police Officer Camron Johnson.
Both Astrid and Meko suffered multiple stab wounds and underwent extensive treatment and recovery, and both were able to return to service.
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