In a letter to Dr. Albert Vasquez, the Assistant Vice-Chancellor and Chief of Police at UC Merced, Morse stated that his office had reviewed the police reports and other evidence that led Officer Olaf Lopez to use deadly force. The review concluded the imminent threat Mohammad presented to officers when he was contacted justified his actions.
According to the evidence cited by Morse, Lopez and Officer Kevin Warkentin had been dispatched to another call for service at the Library Building when they received a radio transmission that informed them a stabbing had just taken place at the adjacent Classroom and Office Building. A description of the suspect, Mohammad, was also provided to the officers. Upon scanning the common area outside the Library, Lopez saw the suspect engage one of the victims and run off in a westerly direction on Scholars Lane.
Both officers pursued Mohammad and caught up to him on the bridge just west of the Library. The officers yelled at Mohammad who turned toward them holding a large knife in his right hand. The officers estimated their distance from the suspect was approximately 10 feet. Both officers commanded Mohammad to “get on the ground” and “put the knife down,” according to the evidence. These commands were issued repeatedly by the officers but ignored by Mohammad.
Instead, Mohammad immediately advanced toward the officers and appeared to lunge toward Lopez with the knife raised about shoulder height. Lopez drew his service weapon and fired one shot at Mohammad. When Mohammad continued to advance toward the officer he fired a second shot and Mohammad fell to the ground. The area was secured and an ambulance was ordered. Mohammad was subsequently declared dead at the scene by paramedics.
Morse said he directed Chief Investigator Pat Lunney to conduct the review of this officer involved shooting. Lunney, who served for 15 years as Merced Police Chief and six years as Director of the Division of Law Enforcement for the California Attorney General’s office, noted the consistency of the statements and description of the entire incident by witnesses in determining that the shooting was clearly justified. Lunney advised that the officer’s action were consistent with established law enforcement training.
“This horrible event was a tragedy for everyone involved, especially Officer Lopez who was forced by Mohammad’s aggressive actions to use deadly force.” Morse said. “Officer Lopez correctly assessed a potentially life threatening situation and took the necessary action to protect himself or anyone else from becoming a victim of a person who was clearly intent on inflicting injury or death on innocent people.
“Unfortunately, the force necessary to protect himself and others resulted in the loss of a life, but everyone from the UC Merced police to students to medical personnel responded with the highest level of professionalism,” Morse said.
Source: Merced County District Attorney
