LAKE ELMO, Minn. (AP) - The family of a Lake Elmo man fatally shot by a Washington County deputy has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit in federal court.
Benjamin Evans, 23, was killed during a standoff in April 2018. Evans was upset about his ex-girlfriend and held a gun to his head for about 45 minutes at an intersection in Lake Elmo.
The plaintiff said Evans never made a move to harm the officers. It names the deputy who shot Evans, Brian Krook and the sheriff’s office among several others.
An attorney representing the defendants, Joe Flynn, said all of them are currently employed with the county, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported.
Krooks was charged with second-degree manslaughter for Evans’ death, but a jury decided his use of deadly force was within the law.
The lawsuit alleges that the defendants were “wrongful, negligent or otherwise responsible in some manner for the events that led to the wrongful death of Evans.”
The defendants also violated Evans’ constitutional rights by failing to accommodate his mental health disability, the plaintiffs said.
The lawsuit asks for a jury to determine damages if the case goes to trial.
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