Pulaski County Prosecuting Attorney Daniel P. Murphy has completed his review of the circumstances surrounding last month’s fatal police-involved shooting on U.S. 421 south of Francesville.
Deputy Brandon Eber of Pulaski County, Officer Roger Young of the Monon Police Department and Deputies Jodi Rohler and John Eads of Tippecanoe County all fired shots at 36-year-old Peter J. Doffin, Jr. of Lafayette, according to the Indiana State Police.
He had led officers from several departments on a high-speed chase through multiple counties after reportedly snatching a juvenile female from a Warren County home around 4:30 a.m. on March 28th. The pursuit ended about two hours later on U.S. 421 about four miles south of Francesville in Pulaski County when Doffin’s SUV ran off the side of the highway.
Murphy says the investigation found the officers were justified in their use of deadly force. He adds they took all reasonable steps to protect themselves and others in a situation that posed an imminent threat of serious bodily injury and/or death.
As a result, Murphy says no criminal charges are contemplated and none will be filed arising from this set of circumstances. He says all human life is important, and the taking of any person’s life by another is to be avoided. Murphy adds this was a circumstance where it was necessary to take a human life in the interest of public safety.
