ST. Cloud-A jury in the Stearns County District Court on Friday acquitted a 19-year-old man charged with shooting an officer in St. Cloud during a conflict last June.
Sumaree D. Boose was charged last year with a felony of one assault by a police officer.
He was subsequently acquitted by 12 juries One week trial It ended at noon on Friday. By 3:15 pm, the jury had reached the verdict.
The encounter in June last year caused rumors of police shootings at black men, which sparked several igniters. Night of anxiety At St. Cloud.
According to court documents, Boose fled police on the night of June 14, and a gun fired during a fight in the backyard on the south side of the city. I hit Officer Ryan Priebe on my right and Boose on my chin.
“The person who fired the gun used deadly force,” Ole Twetten, head of the Criminal Division at Stearns County Law Firm, said in a closing remark. “We know where the bullet came from.”
Tvedten argued that if Boose triggered, the action was intentional and met the legal definition of assault.
During the trial, Tvedten provided evidence that Boose’s fingerprint was found in a 9mm pistol magazine fired during the case. Further evidence showed a mixture of two or more DNA profiles on the trigger, one containing a matching Boose and no Priebe, Tvedten said.
Booz did not testify and the defense did not call witnesses. Defendant lawyer Jason Migara claimed that the DNA evidence did not prove intent. This was necessary for the booth to be found guilty.
The jury was able to see footage of a short police car and taser, but there was no video evidence of what was happening under Booz while he and Prive were fighting on the ground, Migara said.
In addition, a taser wire was wrapped around the trigger and dirt and grass were found on the gun. This indicates that the gun was pushed into the ground during the incident. According to Migara, there is no way to prove that it was an outburst or someone triggered it.
“There is no evidence to suggest that Smary Booz triggered it,” Migara said.
Jenny Berg • 612-673-7299
Twitter: @bergjenny