LOS ANGELES (AP) - A Torrance police officer who rammed and shot up a pickup truck with the driver inside during a manhunt for cop-turned-killer Christopher Dorner won’t face criminal charges, prosecutors said.
A review determined that Officer Brian McGee was reasonable and justified in his use of force because he believed Dorner was in the truck and had shot at officers, according to a Jan. 6 report from prosecutors that was sent to the Torrance police chief last week.
At the time, authorities were on alert for Dorner, a fired Los Angeles policeman who killed four people - including two law enforcement officers - during a weeklong rampage that ended with his suicide in a mountain cabin as searchers closed in on him.
Dorner was still at large when Torrance police spotted the pickup truck driven by David Perdue of Redondo Beach, who was on his way to surf.
Before the Feb. 7 shooting, McGee had heard reports that Dorner had been spotted driving toward the Los Angeles suburb. He also heard gunshots and mistakenly believed that Dorner was in a gunfight with officers, the report said.
McGee rammed the truck to stop it, but said he couldn’t see the driver because the activated air bag hid him, the report said.
McGee riddled the truck with bullets. Perdue wasn’t hit but claimed he suffered head and spinal injuries and lost his job as a Los Angeles International Airport baggage handler because of the incident.
The city of Torrance paid him $20,000 for the damage to his truck and he has filed a federal lawsuit.
The report by prosecutors said McGee was forced to make a split-second decision in a rapidly evolving situation during a time of “fear and extreme anticipation.”
The officer made a reasonable mistake in believing Dorner was in the truck, even though it “nearly resulted in a horrific tragedy,” the report concluded.
A call to Perdue’s attorney, Robert Sheahan, seeking comment was not immediately returned Tuesday.
Two women delivering newspapers in Torrance were shot at by Los Angeles police officers during the manhunt. The city reached a $4.2 million settlement with the women in April in addition to a $40,000 settlement for the loss of their pickup truck.
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