Police investigation continues: Peterson still in critical condition - Nevada (IA) Journal

By Marlys Barker and Tiffany Cornelius

9/25/08 - A Nevada resident is in critical condition at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines, and two Nevada police officers are on paid administrative leave, following an event that occurred in Nevada last Friday evening.

According to the report from the Story County Communications Department (dispatch center) and an interview with Nevada Police Chief Michael Tupper, the incident occurred as follows.

At 5:52 p.m. Friday, John Page, who lives at 1416 M Ave., called Story County 911. Page stated he had gotten a call from his home (he was not home at the time), and he was told that Eric Peterson, age 33, 1406 M Ave., was at the Page home and was choking his son-in-law, Sam Maley. It was reported that Peterson thought the Maleys had taken his dog.

A second 911 call came shortly after from Leta Maley, who reported that Peterson was chasing people with a knife. Although the type of knife has not been identified, Tupper said the crime lab reported a blade between eight and 10 inches in length.

As Nevada officers Adam Fischels and Kailen Fitzgerald were dispatched, they received information that Peterson was armed with a knife, threatening pedestrians in the area, had attempted to choke another person and had jumped on top of a vehicle.

Fischels was first on the scene, arriving in less than two minutes.

A dash cam video from Fischels' car shows Peterson running toward the patrol car with a knife in his hand, jumping on the hood of the vehicle, up onto the roof and then jumping off. After that, Fischels' radioed to dispatch that Peterson was chasing his vehicle. Peterson cannot be seen in the footage, but the video shows Fischels turning his car in a circular pattern in the parking lot located at 13th Street and M Avenue. Tupper said that Fischels was trying to maneuver into a safe position to exit the vehicle.

Fitzgerald arrived at the scene after Fischels. Fitzgerald's dash cam video shows him approaching the parking lot entrance, and as he turns into the lot, Peterson runs toward the vehicle with the knife. The collision between the patrol car and Peterson happens within seconds of Fitzgerald entering the parking lot.

Tupper said, after watching the video, the collision "looks more incidental than intentional."

Tupper said it is important that the public consider the totality of the situation. "This was a deadly force situation," he said. "The officers were immediately confronted by a very violent, out-of-control, enraged person. There was no opportunity (for them) to safely or unsafely exit their vehicles."

Tupper said in this case, the officers also had to think about the safety of residents and pedestrians in the area, including a number of children who were practicing on the soccer fields less than two blocks away at Harrington Park.

"People get involved in law enforcement because they want to help people. We have a great group of officers (in Nevada) that try to do that every day. Unfortunately, sometimes the officers have to deal with dangerous and deadly situations."

After the collision, emergency personnel responded to the scene, and Peterson was airlifted to Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines. He is listed in critical condition at this time.

On Sunday afternoon, the Peterson family issued a statement through Jim Hibbs of Wixted, Pope, Nora, Thompson and Associates, a communications firm in West Des Moines. Hibbs said he spoke with an aunt of Eric Peterson, who asked him to share the following information on behalf of Peterson's parents, Arlyss and Michael Peterson of Nevada.

"The family of Eric Peterson thanks friends and supporters for standing by them during this difficult time. Eric remains in critical condition and is fighting for his life. We hope and pray that he will make a complete recovery.

"The family was allowed to view the police-recorded videotape of the incident and want to ensure the public has all the facts of the case. Eric did not attack either officer. Eric did not try to get into either police car. He was holding a knife, but not brandishing it. He did jump on the hood of the first police car and run onto the roof and over the vehicle, but his actions were not an attempt to gain entry into the vehicle. As that car drove away, Eric was chasing it on foot, and not likely to be able to catch it. The second police officer arrived and appears to purposefully strike Eric.

"Eric is mentally ill and his actions are not always within his voluntary control. Nevada police officers, including the two involved in this incident, are well aware of Eric's mental illness.

"We do not want to place blame at this time, but we want to ensure that all the facts of the case be distributed on Eric's behalf. We appreciate your continued support, prayers and respect for our privacy. The family will have nothing further to say on this matter at this time."

Tupper said, "I'm very saddened for the Peterson family and I'm praying that Eric is O.K. But it's not a fair assertion that the officer (Fitzgerald) set out to run him down...The Nevada Police Department is very concerned about issues related to mental illness, and I think we've taken a proactive stance during my tenure to deal with these problems. Outside of (Iowa Law Enforcement) academy training and department field training, we continually seek additional training for our staff that deals with people who have mental illness or who are emotionally disturbed."

Officer Kailen Fitzgerald was cleared for active duty at the beginning of August after a confrontation with Tony Hayes on July 27 on Lincoln Highway. Hayes fled to Nevada by bicycle after he walked into the Casey's General Store on Lincoln Way in Ames and shot 27-year-old Lacrissa Davis to death. During the confrontation, Hayes was able to get into Fitzgerald's patrol car and flee the area. Hayes was pursued by several law enforcement agencies to State Center, where he died from a self-inflicted shotgun wound.

Tupper does not believe that the July 27 incident played a part in the officer's actions in this case. Fitzgerald was cleared by an internal investigation, as well as an investigation by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. "Our investigation showed that he acted within department policy and within the law," Tupper said.

On Monday, Tupper and members of DCI met with Story County Attorney Stephen Holmes. Tupper told the Nevada City Council Monday night that Holmes advised that the officers were justified in their actions and that the DCI officials' preliminary findings do not find the officers at fault.

"That doesn't change how we feel about it," Tupper said. "Our officers are distraught and upset. I am upset. But this incident was not caused by the police officers or their actions. They did everything they could to defend themselves and the community."

The Nevada Police Department's internal investigation of the incident continues. "We are going to conduct a thorough and detailed investigation and once we've gathered everything, we will release it to the public," Tupper told the council. "Mental illness does play a part in this, but we cannot be blamed for what happened. I stand by my officers, and I stand by what happened."

Fitzgerald and Fischels are on paid administrative leave while the investigation continues.

*LISTEN TO AND VIEW full versions of the 911 calls and the Nevada Police Department dash cam videos online at www.nevadaiowajournal.com. Also online is a letter to the editor from Arlyss Peterson, mother of Eric Peterson, after a 2006 incident involving Eric and Nevada Police officers.