SOUTH BEND, Ind.–A former South Bend police officer properly followed his training when he shot a black man in June of 2019, says a special prosecutor.
Special Prosecutor Ric Hertel says Ryan O’Neill will not face charges in the shooting of Eric Logan and that his actions were “justified.” Logan had a knife on him when he charged at O’Neill, investigators say.
“Logan was impaired and under the influence of alcohol when he was shot by O’Neill on June 16th,” Hertel said during a press conference Friday.
O’Neill’s body camera was not turned on at the time of the shooting.
O’Neill is not off the hook, however. He was booked into jail Friday morning on preliminary charges of public indecency, official misconduct, and ghost employment. Those are unrelated to the Logan shooting.
Logan’s family members expressed outrage at the press conference when Hertel announced his findings.
“You’re standing up there telling us lies,” one person said.
Another family member said the report is full of contradictions. She said the knife Logan had doesn’t have a point, which hardly makes it a “deadly weapon.”
