Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office settles lawsuit over mentally ill man’s shooting for $2 million

St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO)

April 19-- Apr. 19--JEFFERSON COUNTY -- The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office has agreed to a $2 million settlement of a federal lawsuit filed after a deputy shot a 23-year-old mentally ill man twice in 2015.

The settlement with the injured man, Lucas "Luke" Hinkebein, denies wrongdoing or liability on the part of deputies or the department, as is common in such agreements. But it follows legal motions that argued that because the department had destroyed evidence, jurors in any future trial should be told that the shooting was unreasonable or a judge should find in favor of Hinkebein before trial.

The money was paid by the Missouri Public Entity Risk Management Fund. The settlement says $2 million is the maximum insurance coverage available.

The March settlement was obtained Thursday by the Post-Dispatch after an open records request.

Hinkebein's lawyer Jason Turk declined to comment on the lawsuit or the settlement, saying only, "The matter has been settled."

Lawyers for the sheriff's office and individual deputies did not respond to requests for comment.

In an email, Sheriff Dave Marshak wrote, "I learned of this on-going litigation soon after being sworn in as Sheriff, despite it occurring prior to my administration. I know it was recently resolved with the former Sheriff's signature, but I was required to sign a confidentiality agreement not to discuss any part of the claim. I can share however, since I have been Sheriff we have implemented new policies and procedures related to evidence and are setting the standard for evidence retention."

Sheriff's office filings in response to the evidence destruction claims were sealed from public view.

In court filings, a lawyer for the deputies wrote that any claim that deputies "concoct(ed) a story" of the shooting "is a serious and offensive claim that is refuted by a wealth of competent evidence." The filings also say that deputies had no control over the evidence.

Hinkebein suffered a traumatic brain injury and has no memory of the shooting, court records say. He was released from a hospital last year.

A call for help

On Nov. 9, 2015, then-Sheriff Oliver "Glenn" Boyer said deputies were called to the man's home, in the 1600 block of Sparrow Point Lane south of Fenton, by his mother. She said her son was out of control, suicidal and trying to hit her, Boyer said. Boyer did not use Hinkebein's name but said the man had a knife and had been disarmed by a relative before deputies arrived.

Boyer said the man was calm but began to struggle when deputies tried to handcuff him, and he tried to remove one of the deputy's handguns, firing a shot while doing so.

Another deputy fired three times, hitting the man in the head and cheek. One bullet had not been located, Boyer said at the time.

Boyer also said deputies had been to the man's home previously, and that he had a violent history.

Boyer said it appeared that deputies handled the situation correctly.

Evidence destroyed

In a 2016 lawsuit and subsequent legal filings, lawyers for Hinkebein said that he had been shot in the back of the head twice at point-blank range. They said the department conducted no ballistic nor forensic testing and destroyed much of the shooting evidence 16 days after receiving a letter that said lawyers were now representing the Hinkebein family in "potential claims" against the department.

That destruction occurred 20 days after a letter from prosecutors announced that Deputy Dennis Roberts' actions in shooting Hinkebein were justified.

Among the items destroyed were cartridges, bullet fragments, the holster from which Hinkebein allegedly drew the gun, original recordings of witness statements, memory cards with crime scene photos, and uniforms worn by deputies. The evidence envelopes containing the two firearms that had been used that night had been torn open in the evidence room at some point by someone, the filings say. The filings also say that although deputies testified that one shot was fired by Hinkebein and two by Roberts, four shell casings were found.

In excerpts of depositions filed by Hinkebein's lawyers, Deputy Wayne Allen Rice said that he saw Hinkebein's hands on his gun. He said the gun was coming out of his holster.

Roberts said he fired two shots from less than a foot away from the back of Hinkebein's head.

Hinkebein's mother and father testified that there was no struggle, and their son and the three deputies were motionless before the shooting. "It looked like a painting," Mark Hinkebein said.

Sgt. James Kausler testified that an evidence custodian made the decision to destroy the evidence.

The department had no policies mandating the preservation of evidence when lawsuits were threatened or when an officer was involved in a shooting, Hinkebein's lawyers said in filings, despite their duty to do so.

The Jefferson County Penknife reported that the County Council on April 8 approved the purchase of a $780,000 building to house evidence for the sheriff's office. The ordinance says the office is running out of space for evidence.

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