offi cer down: Ambiguous Deadly Force Decisions Under Stress: Josh Shemenski’s Second Shooting
As unpleasant as it may be to critique the actions of fellow offi cers who have been injured or killed in the line of duty, it is even more distasteful to see their blood shed in vain, to deny others the lessons we can learn from their sacrifi ces. The purpose of this column is not to criticize, but to learn from the mistakes and triumphs of those who have faced lethal violence fi rsthand. With this in mind, this column is dedicated to the offi cers whose stories are told here, and to all our fellow offi cers who have been killed and injured in unselfi sh service to their communities.
he headlights of the 4X4 pickup truck behind him filled his rearview mirror as Deputy Josh Shemenski, a 27-year-old, four-year veteran of the sheriff’s department, tried to locate 7825 Hickory Mill Court. Shemenski, his girlfriend Amber beside him as a ride-along, couldn’t help being annoyed by the big pickup riding his bumper, but he was also uneasily curious about why someone would tailgate a marked squad car down a deserted residential street in the middle of the night. He was en route to an unknown disturbance call in a remote gated community located in a sector of the county he seldom patrolled. He wasn’t exactly sure where Hickory Mill Court intersected the road ahead of him or how much farther he would have to go once he found it. The tailgating pickup truck was an added distraction he didn’t need right now, but it would be unsafe to ignore it. He kept a wary eye on the vehicle as he continued to look for the intersection.
DESCRIPTION OF INCIDENT T He didn’t have to go far. T ere was an
intersecting street up ahead on his right and as he drew closer, his headlights illuminated the name “Hickory Mill” on its street sign. As Shemenski made the turn, the pickup followed, its grille and headlights engulf- ing his rearview mirror in glittering chrome and bright light. Shemenski kept going, not knowing where the road ended and still
naggingly distracted by the pickup. T e road made a sweeping curve to the right into what Shemenski believed to be the be- ginning of a straightaway eventually leading to a cul-de-sac beyond. But he was dividing his attention between the road ahead and the pickup behind, and as he came out of the curve, he was surprised to see that the road ended abruptly at the cul-de-sac. At almost the same instant, he spotted a group of people arguing in the front yard of a house on the far left side of the cul-de-sac. Suddenly, the shadowy fi gure of a man carrying a long dark object broke away from the small crowd and ran from left to right, apparently heading for the other side of the court. As the man came into the beams of the patrol car’s headlights, Shemenski could clearly see the object he was carrying. It was a long gun, its chunky form immediately iden- tifying it as a shotgun. T e man stopped and started to pivot toward Shemenski’s cruiser, swinging the deadly muzzle of the shotgun up into fi ring position as he turned. “Here we go again!” Shemenski thought. T e suddenly deadly confrontation was ominously reminiscent of another shooting he had been involved in just 18 months ear- lier (see “Offi cer Down: Vehicle Ambush!” in the Jul/Aug 2014 issue of T e Police Marksman) and his response was the same. Without conscious thought, he drew his .40 caliber Glock and thrust it into fi ring posi- tion with his forearm resting against the steering wheel and the gun’s muzzle nearly touching the windshield. T e draw had been fl awless and lightning fast, but the shotgun was already pointing directly at him. Sh-
emenski fi red two quick shots through the windshield, fi lling the cruiser with blasts of light and sound as the slugs crashed through the windshield on their way toward their tar- get. Instantly, the man threw his hands into the air, sending the shotgun fl ying as he fell to the ground. T e shotgun landed at his feet a split second later, but he didn’t make any eff ort to reach for it. T e man now lying still and silent in the yard was a 26-year-old veteran with no prior arrests named Michael Rusk. T e un- known disturbance that led to the shooting had been a family related incident in which Rusk had told family members he intended to commit suicide. By sheer coincidence, he had grabbed the shotgun and run away just as Shemenski entered the cul-de-sac, appar- ently with the intent to shoot himself. Shemenski didn’t know all this of course, but with Rusk down and apparently out of the fi ght, he slammed the gear shift lever into reverse and sped backward to the mouth of the cul-de-sac just as the pickup truck roared past him on his left. As Shem- enski jumped from his cruiser, the pickup came to a hard stop just yards from Rusk, who was now rising to his feet. Shemenski kept advancing, moving over to the right of the pickup truck with most of his attention still focused on the man who had just tried to kill him. To Shemenski’s relief, Rusk’s hands were empty and hanging loosely at his sides, but the deputy now had the truck on his left to worry about. T en things got more complicated and dangerous. An older man on his hands and knees suddenly came into view from in front of the pickup, scur- ried over to the shotgun laying in the yard, and picked it up!
Shemenski instantly dropped the muzzle of the Glock down toward this new target as his fi nger slipped into the trigger guard. But just as the deputy’s mind started to tell him it was time to pull the trigger, the older man threw the shotgun into the air. Inexplicably, the weapon fl ew end-over- end for several yards before landing muzzle down and becoming stuck straight up in the ground.
“Stay right where you are and don’t move!” Shemenski commanded, and then
35 The Police Marksman Sep-Oct 2014
www.policemarksman.com
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