Idaho attorney general says officers who fatally shot intellectually
disabled teen won't be charged
[September 04, 2025]
By MARTHA BELLISLE
Four Idaho police officers who fatally shot an autistic, nonverbal
teenage boy who was holding a knife on the other side of a chain-link
fence in April were justified in their actions and will not face
criminal charges, the state attorney general said Wednesday.
Victor Perez, 17, was in a coma for a week before dying April 12 after
doctors removed nine bullets during several surgeries and amputated his
leg. The shooting in southeast Idaho city of Pocatello, which was
captured on video, drew outrage from members of the community who
questioned why the officers opened fire within 12 seconds of exiting
their vehicles.
The Bannock County Prosecutor’s Office asked Idaho Attorney General Raúl
Labrador to review the case to determine whether the officers committed
a crime and if their use of force was justified. Labrador said the
investigation showed that the officers did not know Perez's age or
disabilities, and they were only told an intoxicated man was threatening
people with a knife.
“Believing that individuals were in danger of being stabbed, the
officers chose to run toward the fence in case the officers needed to
take immediate action to protect others from harm,” he said in a letter
to the prosecutor. "The officers' decision to place themselves at the
fence to protect others made the officers vulnerable to a knife attack
from someone standing immediately on the other side of the fence.
“Under Idaho law, the officers did not have a duty to retreat from the
fence before using deadly force," Labrador said. These factors would
make a criminal prosecution untenable, so they will not file charges
against the officers, he said.
Ben Nisenbaum, an Oakland, California, lawyer representing the family in
a wrongful death claim against the city of Pocatello, said the family
was deeply disappointed by the attorney general's decision, arguing that
the officers had a duty to retreat.
“At the end of the day, anyone responding to that situation would know
he was developmentally disabled by the way he was acting. It was
obvious,” Nisenbaum told The Associated Press in a phone interview.
"Stepping away was what a reasonable person would do."
Email and phone messages seeking comment from Pocatello Police Chief
Roger Schei about the attorney general's decision and whether the
officers faced discipline were not immediately returned.
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In this image taken from video, police are seen shortly before
opening fire on a teen on the other other side of a fence, April 5,
2025, in Pocatello, Idaho. (Brad Andres via AP, File)
Perez, who is autistic, has an abnormal gait and other medical
conditions had managed to get ahold of a large kitchen knife on
April 5 and was walking around the yard swinging it. Video shows his
grandfather, mother and 16-year-old sister trying to take it from
him.
A person who saw the struggle called 911, saying it appeared the
person was intoxicated and was trying to stab people. Three officers
arrived and approached the backyard carrying Glock handguns, and a
fourth officer had a beanbag shotgun. The sister waved her arms at
the officers and shouted, but they focused their attention on Perez,
who was lying on the ground, the attorney general's letter said.
They shouted for Perez to drop the knife, and he got up on his
knees. He pointed the blade to the sky as he fell forward, catching
himself with his hand. He stood up and stepped toward the officers
and they opened fire — releasing fourteen bullets and a beanbag
shot. Investigators estimated the distance between them and Perez
was about 12 feet (3.6 meters).
The Eastern Idaho Critical Incident Task Force investigated the
shooting. The autopsy said the cause of death was multiple gunshot
wounds. The officers gave interviews to the task force, but they
declined to speak with the attorney general's office, the letter
said. Instead, they sent audio recordings and transcripts of
interviews they gave to a third party, the letter said.
After reviewing the material collected, the attorney general said
they won't file criminal charges against the officers “because the
state would be unable to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the
officers' use of force was not justified.”
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